
Class 

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THE VOICE OF ISIS 



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THE VOICE OF ISIS 

By the Teacher of 
Stye ©rter nf (Pjrtflttatt M$Bt\t* 



Transcribed by 
HARRIETTE AUGUSTA CURTISS, F. O. IS 

and 

F. HOMER CURTISS , B. S., M. D., F. 0. 15 

Secretary of the Order. 



SECOND AND REVISED EDITION 



PUBLISHED FOR THE ORDER 
BY 

'_-.'. OUIsriSS BOOK COMPANY 



LOS ANGELES, 1914 

PRIC^ $1.50, POSTPAID 




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Copyrighted 1914 

by 

F. HOMER CURTISS, M. D. 

Los Angeles, Cal. 



OCT • 



The Hicks-Judd Company 
Printers and Bookbinders 
51-65 First St., San Francisco 



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(TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER I. 
life's duties. 

PAGE 29 

Physical weariness preventing study — real duties and 
assumed duties — household or business cares — make 
all yield their lessons — how to find time for meditation 
— the attitude of mind to hold — your real duty — joining 
organized movements — carrying the Silence with you 
—what you really worship — highest duty that which 
is nearest — doing others' duties depletes you and robs 
them — attainment of self-poise — nothing confronts you 
that is not a step — watch for the little joys — each heart 
a deep well — your star of destiny — thought-currents 
moulding the body — the sanctuary, what should occupy 
it — the Place of Peace. 

CHAPTER II. 

THE CYCLE OF FULFILLMENT. 
PAGE 39 

4912 begins an important cycle — solar system enters 
Aquarius — the Year of Jubilee — the lower must be 
reaped first — influence of Uranus in Aquarius — cyclic 
cataclysms — the Law of Divine Harmony — the swas- 
tika — illustration of the dough — key-note of a storm 
— every planet is tested — origin of comets — alchem- 
ical changes within the earth — the effect of the stars 
on each other — certain forces only now reaching the 
earth — planets destined to become suns — thought-force 
of a planet its key-note — Saturn the Initiator — earth the 
new note — the Sign of the Son of Man — reign of 
Aquarius 2170 years — cycle of fulfillment for each 
nation and organization — reasons for poverty and 
sickness — earth evolving toward sunhood — find the 
Place of Peace. 



Contents 
CHAPTER III. 

DEGREES AND ORDERS. 
PAGE SO 

The seven-fold division of the cosmos — the geom- 
etry of Nature — geometrical law in the mental world 
— the Great White Lodge, how constituted — what is 
a Master? — Masters afhnitized to all stages of evolu- 
tion and classes of thought — the seven Degrees of Hu- 
manity — seven Orders in each Degree — the great 
Fourth Degree — it includes all advanced movements — 
its Orders — how the Orders are formed — positive and 
negative Orders — the Order of the 36 — the Order of 
the 28— the Order of the 21— The Order of the 15— 
its former manifestations — the Holy Grail — the Order 
of the 10 — the higher Orders as yet unmanifested — 
the great Third Degree, Divinity. 

CHAPTER IV. 

THE WISDOM RELIGION. 
PAGE 66 

Originally given to all mankind — existed many cen- 
turies before Christianity — the esoteric doctrines — the 
reasons for esoterism — the Wisdom still preserved — 
how to seek — fearlessness required — "when the pupil 
is ready the Teacher appears" — how to come close — 
disciples must be proved — compassion the result — the 
union with the Divine, how accomplished — the Path of 
Attainment — realization in the flesh. 

CHAPTER V. 

CONCERNING THE DOCTRINE OF HELL FIRE. 
PAGE 75 

The Bible an allegory — scriptures universally true — 
teachings of the Johannites — use of myths — the Path 



Contents 

of At-one-ment — Hebrew symbols — journey of the 
awakened Soul — the Master Jesus, a historical person- 
age — Our Lord crucified in Sodom — hell-fire a bogie — 
its significance — the lake which burneth — symbology 
of brimstone — gases gathering for cataclysms — body 
sees corruption — all pass through karmic burnings — 
The Christ must descend into hell — hell-fire consumes 
only the false — must weave immortal garments — the 
New Jerusalem. 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE ELEVENTH COMMANDMENT 
PAGE 86 

After the awakening a depression — fear of the step 
taken — the valley of the shadow of death — the eleventh 
commandment — the duodecimal system — choosing 
your standard of life — find out your business and mind 
it — definition of the subconscious mind — the Super- 
conscious mind — the human mind — the reason for 
periods of depression — latent faults revealed — tempta- 
tion to pick flaws — fight your own battles — mansions 
in heaven — not a post-mortem state — aim of physical 
existence — why waste time ? — set your own world right 
— Universal Brotherhood — results according to the law 
of harmony. 

CHAPTER VII. 

NARCOTICS, ALCOHOL AND PSYCH ISM. 
PAGE 98 

Vital centers — building of the spiritual body — oily 
sheaths protect centers — opening of the centers — 
mtj.st.be controlled by the will — the Holy Ghost — the 
sin against — no such thing as a "lost Soul" — soulless 
entities — composition of alcohol — effect on the centers 
— Zanoni's "dweller on the threshold" — tobacco, tea 



Contents 

and coffee — Masters cannot contact drug" fiends- 
drunkards and the Bible — karmic results — mediums — 
one reason for imbeciles — "sitting for development" — 
difference between spiritual communication and sub- 
jective mediumship — Yogi practices — astral entities 
not spiritual — Bible references to the centers or gates 
— story of Job an initiation — those who climb up some 
other way — this Order is the Church of Philadelphia, 
the Open Door — every movement a door for certain 
forces — this Order the heart-center — members respon- 
sible for a movement — do not accept any teaching with- 
out the confirmation of your own Divine Guidance. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

A STUDY OF KARMA. 
PAGE 114 

Explanation of — illustrations — karma not a Neme- 
sis — the Lords of Karma — karma not a punishment — 
Soul-qualities to be gained — storms and disasters 
agents of karma — sorrows to teach lessons — object of 
karma is harmony — danger of invoking karma — Race 
and World-karma — Masters must work with karma- 
Souls are cells — Heavenly Man — Soul chooses its Path 
— number of incarnations — Prodigal Son — humanity 
compared to the blood — awakening of the personality 
— each Soul in its proper place. 

CHAPTER IX. 

THE SELF. 
PAGE 126 

The I AM — personal self not to be despised— 
necessary to the Real Self — but not all-important — 
symbol of the diver — bestriding the Bird of Life — 
symbol of the I and the i — faith in your Self — the 



Contents 

Paramhmsa and the World-Egg — the Soundless Sound 
— the Silent Thinker — your work for humanity limited 
by the little self — take account of stock, your per- 
sonality — do your own thinking — seeming humble and 
real humility — claims to holiness — be up and doing — 
do not dwell on your troubles — life but a school of 
the Soul — pinning the self to earth — symbol of the 
barnacles — spiritual ambition — the Fourth Gate — the 
Soul is Divine — the self becomes the True Self. 

CHAPTER X. 

THE DOCTRINE OF AVATARA. 
PAGE 137 

Definition — Jesus an Avatar — not a mortal — method 
of appearance — advent determined by humanity — 
necessity for an inspired priesthood — sacrament of 
marriage — lesser manifestations — Avesha Avataras — 
each movement to have an Avesha — qualifications and 
limitations of an Avesha — an Avatar comes to human- 
ity not to any one sect — Bible references — time of His 
coming — law of cycles — cycles of the century — signs 
of His coming — the 144,000 — mission of The Order of 
the 15. 

CHAPTER XI. 

A STUDY OF REINCARNATION. 
PAGE 1SS 

A world-old teaching — proof acceptable to all im- 
possible — illustrated by actor in Hamlet — what hap- 
pens after death — definition of the astral-plane — Soul 
chooses to reincarnate — incarnates among old asso- 
ciates — how the "why" is forgotten — more Souls ex- 
carnate than incarnate — many wait for special 
stages of civilization — incarnate under their own sub- 
ray — time between incarnations — change of sex in 



Contents 

incarnation — reasons for change of sex — possibility 
of attaining androgynous condition — incarnation to 
work for humanity — voluntary incarnation of a Great 
Teacher — complex personality of H. P. B. 

CHAPTER XII. 

POWER. 
PAGE 164 

The image of God — "All power is given unto me" 
•—cosmic centers of power — only man correlates all 
powers — Eastern teachings — the seven mystic powers 
— the supreme power — power of intellect — power of 
will — power of thought — power of the life-principle — 
power of speech — the sub conscious mind and its func- 
tions — dreams of three classes — animals governed by 
a Group-soul — use of imagination — the Kundalini or 
serpent-power — overcoming fear — speech is creative — ■ 
the power of a tone — power of words of love and en- 
couragement — our responsibility for idle words — how 
to attain the use of your powers — not a far-off possi- 
bility — must begin now. 

CHAPTER XIII. 

A BRIEF OUTLINE OF EVOLUTION 1 . 

DETAILS OF THE RELATION OF THE MASTERS TO 

HUMANITY. 

PAGE 179 

Evolution from above — spiritual ancestors — raw 
materials for the earth — evolution a redemption — 
seven groups of the Elohim — the seven Hierarchies — 
how the Rays blend and co-operate — relation of hu- 
manity to its Progenitors — early Races taught face to 
face — Red Ray now manifesting — symbology of blood 
— use of blood in the Bible — the Blood of The Christ. 



Contents 
CHAPTER XIV. 

THE LAW. 
PAGE 192 

But one Law, Love — descent of the Light — path of 
the rocket — laws of vibration — seven manifestations 
of the Law — Order, everything in orderly sequence — 
Compensation from every experience — Karma not a 
Nemesis but an opportunity — Vibration, working to- 
ward harmony — Cycles, day and night periods of the 
Soul — Balance, necessary for peace — Polarity, human 
love the lower pole, Divine Love the higher pole — 
illustration of the spectrum — Jesus and the Law — 
love the fulfilling of the Law — polarizing to human 
love-atom — lessons brought by Love — temptations 
through love — conquering by polarizing to Divine 
Love — the Book of Life — what will you write in it? 

CHAPTER XV. 

WORLD CHAINS. 
PAGE 204 

Whirling, glowing ether — spirits of the Great Ones 
descend — a Master's description of the cooling of the 
globe — definition of a World-Chain — seven planets to 
each chain — visible worlds the fourth globe of their 
chains — response of consciousness — the world of De- 
sire — seven Rounds or day-periods — mineral domi- 
nated the First Round — vegetable dominated the 
Second Round — animal dominated the Third Round — 
man dominates the Fourth Round — analagous periods 
in man's evolution — the vegetative period — the animal 
period — the mental period — the spiritual period — the 
role of suffering — the work or regeneration — man 
must now stand alone — seek the Soul World — you can 
function in the Divine — the Law must bring about 
your spiritual evolution as surely as the evolution of 
the planet. 



Contents 
CHAPTER XVI. 

PURITY. 
PAGE 2 IS 

The body a temple — animal desires normal to the 
animal — animals guided by a Group-soul — all func- 
tions pure when not perverted — become impure only 
through impure thoughts — human love an expression 
of Divine Love — thoughts express as bodily acts — 
how to keep thoughts pure — do not investigate impur- 
ity — love expressed through sex — sex forces always 
creative — pure thoughts essential during union — crea- 
tion takes place upon all planes — sickness, disease and 
blood-sucking parasites man's own creation — sex rela- 
tions permissible between legally married only — man's 
law must not be violated — true marriage — marriage 
holiest relation between man and woman — reason for 
ceremony — creation of a body — the curse not a pun- 
ishment — necessity for the pure and advanced having 
children — power to create good where evil now exists. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

THE ORIGIN OF MAN. 
PAGE 228 

Orthodox idea — scientific theory — occult teaching 
of Those Who Know — man not from a monkey — man's 
body the climax of physical evolution, his Soul from 
above — seven Great Races — seven sub-races, many 
nations and tribes — the cyclic laws — majority of man- 
kind belong to the Fourth Race, western nations to 
the Fifth — the First Great Race, the Polar — humanity 
sexless and ethereal — the Second Great Race, the 
Hyperboreans — still non-physical — the Third Great 
Race, the Lemurians — the egg-born race — the sexes 
separate — the "fall of man" — the mindless Race — the 
allegory of Genesis — the ape a degenerate offspring 



Contents 

of man — man endowed with the Divine Spark of mind 
— the Fourth Great Race, the Atlantean — the degrada- 
tion of sex — the Divine Instructors withdraw — the 
flood — tower of Babel — the Fifth Great Race, the 
Aryan — the equality of the sexes — the birth of the 
sixth sub-race — the Sixth Great Race — the reign of 
The Christ — the Seventh Great Race — the Golden Age 
— the call of the prophets — the work of The Order of 
the 15. 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE SYMBOL OF THE SERPENT. 
PAGE 241 

Serpent is Saturn, the Initiator — all Masters called 
Serpents of Wisdom — serpent also the sex-force — 
symbol of Adam's rib — the Garden of Eden — the 
kundalini-force — its degradation by the Atlanteans — 
personification of Satan — an entitized thought-form — 
transmutation — ancient serpent-worship — teachings of 
sex sacred — results of celibacy — true esoteric teach- 
ings must be pure — rules far more strict for the ad- 
vanced — killing out results in perversion — highest 
function today — woman the priestess to man — the 
seven veils of Isis — woman must be the uplifter of 
man. 

CHAPTER XIX. 

PURIFICATION VS. DEIFICATION. 
PAGE 256 

The need of this lesson — the forbidden fruit — purity 
and modesty must be preserved — the "queen of this 
world" — misleading astral entities — creating sickness 
and disease — meaning of Peer Gynt — the Ancient One 
— pre-Adamite races symbolized by Lillith — truth 
back of the world's conventions — the twain who are 
one flesh — forming the Trinity — absolute privacy re- 



Contents 

quired — misled through flattery — excuses for license 
— impurity reverses the triangle — apply the test of 
common-sense — add something to the world's stand- 
ards — the woman in purple and scarlet — marriage a 
symbol of the Divine marriage — Divine Love over- 
laps human love — attainment not a dream — lessons of 
the unmarried — spread thoughts of purity — re-enter- 
ing Eden. 

CHAPTER XX. 

THE MEMORY OF PAST LIVES. 
PAGE 269 

Destiny of each Soul — warnings by memory of past 
mistakes — why memory of past lives is not more com- 
mon — memory of trials of one life enough — live in 
the present — other reasons — how the memory is 
awakened — illustration of Abraham Lincoln — psychics 
told they were the Virgin Mary, Moses, Solomon, etc. 
— how to distinguish the true — innate qualities will 
manifest — law of reasonability — example of an Egyp- 
tian priestess — object of re-birth — those who are told 
of their great mission — the preparation necessary — 
false astral teachings — how to guard against — blind 
obedience never required by the Masters. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

THE CYCLE OF NECESSITY. 
PAGE 284 

The Higher Self — chooses environment — personal- 
ity has free-will — all experiences in the One Life — ani- 
mals lack free-will — each Soul has a special work — 
may learn by experience of others — how Soul gains 
control — spiritualization of the centers — danger of 
opening psychic centers — rules for psychic protection 
— how to test psychic messages — masters of evil and 



Contents 

their methods— flattery a feature — how the Masters 
contact a pupil — temptations in the wilderness — fast- 
ing forty days — first temptation, power — second temp- 
tation, self-righteousness — third temptation, ambition 
— judge leniently — cultivate the fruits of the Spirit. 

CHAPTER XXII. 

THE PATH. 
PAGE 295 

Reality of the Path of Discipleship — renunciation — 
the four Gates — First Gate, charity and tolerance — 
Second Gate, harmony, conquering of fear — Third 
Gate, patience — Fourth Gate, mastery of thought — the 
Silent Thinker — three classes of dreams — how to con- 
trol dreams — how to remodel your life — contacting 
thought-currents from above — the goal of attainment. 

CHAPTER XXIII. 
earth's finer forces. 

PAGE 308 

The foot esteemed in the Orient — use of silk on 
feet — earth-forces contacted through feet — how the 
earth breathes — effect of locality on character — mascu- 
line force from mountains, feminine from sea — Kunda- 
lini force and Tree of Life — allegory of Moses and the 
burning bush — crops without rain — magnetic action 
of sun and moon — reason for having largest meal at 
noon — use of shoes. 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

THE LIGHT. 
PAGE 320 

Four days of creation — same for the student — first 
day the light — second day, the firmament — third day, 



Contents 

dry land — period of transmutation — descent of Spirit 
into matter — the end seen from the beginning — creep- 
ing things of the darkness — the Star of Initiation — 
light of Divine Love — effect in your life — do not be sur- 
prised at trials and tests — never say "I cannot" — cour- 
age necessary — Jewel of Great Price — "Let there be 
Light." 

CHAPTER XXV. 

THE TWO TABLES OF STONE. 
PAGE 331 

Law of spiritual evolution — guided by the Elohim 
— force of Saturn the first to emanate — the Law writ- 
ten on two tables of stone — Moses is Mikael-Jehova 
— the Philosopher's Stone — law heretofore read from 
the positive stone — markings on the negative stone 
covered up — stone rejected by the builders — human- 
ity facing its initiation — children of earth making 
mock — a new cycle, an advanced step — man's boasted 
supremacy unsatisfying — the woman-question a burn- 
ing one — man positive on physical-plane, woman on 
spiritual-plane — male Souls in feminine bodies — femi- 
nine equalities must balance masculine — the two tables 
of stone equal — both needed. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

HEALING PRAYER. 
PAGE 341 

Office of the Master, Jesus — power of a name — 
effects on higher planes — the angels draw near — angels 
complementary to humanity — prayer like a projectile 
— the rationale of healing — the One Life. 



Contents 
CHAPTER XXVII. 

THE SILENCE. 
PAGE 346 

The Law of Growth — distinctions between concen- 
tration, meditation, prayer and the Silence — How to 
meditate — concentration required — importance of 
breathing — rhythmic breathing — the complete breath — 
directions — rules for inhalation and exhalation — 
thought to be held while breathing — you are but a 
channel for the Divine — entering the Silence — Dare, 
Do, Keep Silent — the Voice of the Silence. 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

nature's mystic alphabet. 

PAGE 3S6 

Relations of sound, number, color, form — God 
geometrizes — law of correspondence — Nature-shapes 
geometrical — sound the first letter — how to find your 
key-note — selecting your color — sorrow the base clef 
in the Psalm of Life — primary colors, red, yellow, 
blue — others supplementary — colors born of white — ■ 
no pure white — red the key-note of man — yellow the 
Soul-color — blue is feminine, color of the auric en- 
velope — orange the color of prana — orange foods — 
green the Nature-color — why Nature is green — indigo, 
spiritual mind — violet not an earthly color. — 1 is unity 
— 2 separation — 3 the trinity — 4 the earth-plane — 5 
humanity — 6 The Christ-force — 7 Divine Wisdom — 8 
evolution — 9 initiation — 10 unity — the One Law. 

CHAPTER XXIX. 

THE WORD. 
PAGE 370 

Esoteric teaching — Bible not literally true — the 
Word is the Voice of the Higher Self — a Ray from the 



Contents 

Divine — sunbeam imprisoned in the fruit — "as an Ape 
in the World- forest" — the Guardian Angel — fruit im- 
prisoned sunshine — The Christ-consciousness — brain 
centers spiritualized — conscience and human desire — 
how to distinguish — the Lost Word — Bible mentions 
many gods — Epicurus' definition of an infidel — crea- 
tive aspect of the Word — redemption through the 
Word — the Word in Nature — how to pronounce the 
Word. 

CHAPTER XXX. 

ILLUMINATION. 
PAGE 378 

The demand for occult formulas — demanding money 
for spiritual gifts — what illumination is — the story of 
Jesus — the development of Will — law of plant life ap- 
plied to man — we do not create power — free-will to 
choose — this Order gives no formulas — control of 
selfishness a great step — "Know Thyself" — occult 
formulas emphasize selfishness and spiritual pride — 
John the Baptist — intellectual development necessary 
— the example of a life — rules for spiritual attainment. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

THE SYMBOL OF THE SALT. 
PAGE 386 

Role of salt in Nature— symbology of salt — cata- 
clysms and the salt seas — rise of continents as deserts 
— cataclysms in the Soul-life — the brine of tears — the 
Salt covenant — the cleansing through salt — "Ye are 
the salt of the earth" — "Have salt in yourselves and 
have peace one with another." 



Contents 
CHAPTER XXXII. 

THOU SHALT NOT KILL. 
PAGE 393 

The vision of Peter— the One Life — no such thing 
as killing in its real sense — killing is shutting off the 
life-force — Yogi practices — mortifying the flesh — 
mental torture — cleansing the Augean stables — cruelty 
of the Hindus — sacrifice human life to insects — killing 
vermin — killing animals for food — spiritual growth 
does not depend upon the stomach — does vegetarianism 
produce greater tolerance and love — vegetarian races 
not more spiritual — meat does not contain the desire 
— body — passions must be controlled not starved — per- 
fect man must have all functions at fullest power — 
Masters who ate meat — the thought-force most im- 
portant — when thinking continually of food you dwell 
in the stomach — each kingdom sacrifices its life to the 
higher — a change in the form only in which the life- 
force expresses — this is the scheme of evolution — per- 
verted by man's selfishness — their commercial value 
perfects the animals — the cruelty of Nature — effect on 
butchers — killing flies and mosquitoes — killing for 
sport or vanity — man's responsibility to the lower 
kingdoms — decide the question for yourself. 

CHAPTER XXXIII. 

PRAYER OF CONSECRATION. CONCENTRATION HOURS. 
PAGE 408 

Power of mantra — the prayer of consecration — 
comprehension of self necessary — the key to the mys- 
teries — concentrating at noon — correlating with the 
Heart Center of the Order — realization of personal 
communion with the Teacher — special healing services. 



Contents 

CHAPTER XXXIV. 

THE MEANING OF THE SYMBOL. 
PAGE 413 

A symbol tells the source and object of its teachings 
— the meaning of the circle — the Open Eye — the mean- 
ing of the triangle — the five-pointed stars — the mean- 
ing of 15 — the Motto — meaning of DARE — meaning 
of DO— meaning of KEEP SILENT. 



APPENDIX. 

PAGI 

A. How to form a study-class ----- 418 

B. Announcement --------- 421 

C. Special Information Concerning the Order 423 

D. How to join ---------- 432 

E. Requirements - --------- 432 

Index 434-449 



PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION. 

The first edition of The Voice of his was put forth 
in the nature of an experiment to determine whether or 
not occult students of today would appreciate a new 
interpretation of the world-old esoteric principles of the 
Wisdom Religion couched in simple language, recog- 
nizing the occult and mystical side of the Christian 
scriptures and embracing the scientific advances of the 
twentieth century. 

The speedy sale of that edition answered the above 
question in a most positive manner. It also supported 
our claim that the Wisdom Religion is the one World- 
religion back of all and, being a systematized expression 
of cosmic verities, can be interpreted in terms of the 
most advanced thought, and meet the spiritual needs, 
of any age; for it comprehends and anticipates in the 
principles of its philosophy all the discoveries, advances 
and attainments of which man is capable in this world- 
period. 

The hearty reception accorded this volume of 
spiritual philosophy, among all classes of readers also 
shows that in spite of the scientific, materialistic, and 
godless education of the day, there is a great spiritual 
and psychic awakening taking place ; that the human 
heart is as hungry as ever for direct communion with 
the super-physical planes of consciousness as a per- 
sonal experience, and that the human mind is as un- 
satisfied as ever with purely mechanistic and material- 
istic conceptions of the universe, and reaches out as 
eagerly for, and is more than ever ready to accept, a 
spiritual philosophy which includes all that materialistic 
science can reveal, and which is presented in a rational 
and common sense manner. 

Los Angeles, Cal., September, 1914. 



PREFACE. 

The Path to Mastery is marked by the severest self- 
discipline, absolute obedience and unswerving allegi- 
ance to the chosen Teacher or Guru. Throughout the 
ages this training has been administered most rigor- 
ously by various teachers, societies and brotherhoods, 
so much so that the neophyte, once having pledged 
himself to any one occult school or teacher, was domi- 
nated as to what he should eat, wear, do, think and be- 
lieve, having almost no freedom of body or mind. 
Such training was necessary in the past — and still is 
for some. The helpfulness of that method consisted 
in bringing the student to a realization of the great- 
ness of his calling, the littleness of the personal self, 
the emptiness of the pleasures of sense and the barren- 
ness of physical life as compared with the fullness and 
glory of spiritual attainment. 

While The Order of the 15 recognizes that the occult 
law back of the outer observances required by former 
movements is as true today as ever, and that discipline, 
obedience and faithfulness are as requisite today as of 
old, still being an advanced Order it must employ ad- 
vanced methods for attaining the same ends. 

OBJECTS OF THE ORDER OF THE 15. 

Object I. Complete Individuality Through Union 
With the Higher Self. 

The Order of the 1$ is put forth to gather together 
those who are willing to face themselves and who are 
sufficiently advanced to consciously take into their own 
hands the responsibility for the disciplining of their 
lives. Those Souls who are earnestly attracted to its 
teachings and will ultimately be drawn into its ranks 



xxii Preface 

are those who in former lives have passed through 
the severe disciplining and personal training men- 
tioned above and hence should be ready to recognize 
the necessity for discipline and desire the conscious 
realization of the higher life so sincerely as to be will- 
ing to make its attainment their chief aim in life. 
They must give the same implicit obedience — not blind, 
but that which is born of perfect confidence — and the 
same unswerving allegiance to their Teacher as of old, 
this time not because of vows to an earthly teacher or 
Brotherhood enforced by penalty, but voluntarily and 
gladly, with no human voice to command and no great 
personality to follow. For in this case the Teacher 
whom they must learn to recognize and obey is their 
own divine Father-in-heaven, their Higher Self, who 
speaks to them in the sanctuary of their own hearts. 

The ideal put forth by this Order is therefore one 
of constant self-mastery in obedience to the personal 
guidance from within and prompted by the earnest 
desire for spiritual growth and the ability to help 
humanity to a greater realization of The Christ-con- 
sciousness. The teachings of this Order are en- 
tirely constructive, for if only the true is persistently 
put forth the false will disappear of itself. This 
teaching is the acme of individualism — Mastery, the 
manifestation of the Real Self — for the individual, 
and the acme of oneness for the Race. Necessarily 
the fundamental assumption of this teaching is the 
possibility of each Soul coming into conscious personal 
touch not only with his own Father-in-heaven but 
also with those Great Souls, the Masters of Love and 
Wisdom, who are the Elder Brothers and Guardians 
of the Race. The Order of the 15 is one of the ave- 
nues through which those Great Souls are working 
to lead their followers into personal relationship. It 



Preface xxiii 

is a testing ground for those who have passed the 
tests of enforced discipline, an opportunity for them 
to prove their ability and willingness to follow the 
guidance that cornes from within. 

Naturally many are called but few are chosen, for 
only those are finally chosen and admitted to full 
membership who have proved their ability to stand 
firm, and be trained to work unselfishly for humanity 
along the special lines laid down by this Order through 
its agents. It is a far more advanced step to volun- 
tarily give love, fidelity and obedience to a teacher 
because your own Soul recognizes the source of the 
teachings, the objects of the movement and the sacri- 
fice necessarily made by the agents that you may re- 
ceive the teachings, than to give such allegiance be- 
cause of any form of compulsion. 

Object 2. Personal Training in the Philosophy 
of Life. 

The personal training of each pupil is carried on 
partly on the inner planes and partly by correspond- 
ence with the Teacher of the Order through the Sec- 
retary. Such correspondence is open to all who need 
personal help with the problems of their Soul life. 
The answers will contain explanations of the spiritual 
laws which apply to the individual needs of the pupil. 
Definite commands will not be given, for the training 
is designed to foster in the individual perfect freedom 
of choice and to develop the strength of will necessary 
voluntarily to apply the Law to his own problems. 
The letters are signed by the Secretary merely as the 
Agent of the Teacher, and only if the intuition of 
the pupil can grasp the fact that the instruction given 
is more than the human wisdom of the agents can 
its real significance be appreciated. Necessarily such 



xxiv Preface 

letters are more or less cryptic and hence require 
meditation that the light of intuition may reveal their 
true meaning. The method of teaching employed by 
the Teacher of this Order is one in which praise and 
flattery of the pupil plays little part, rather the Teacher 
points out the stumbling blocks in the pupil's Path to 
Realization and tests both his intuition, his sincerity 
and his humility. Only the determined and the cour- 
ageous can win final victory. 

Object 3. A Higher Standard of Purity on all 
Planes. 

It is comparatively easy for one who is determined 
to lead The Christ-life to curb his grosser passions, 
refrain from acts of impurity and injustice and lead 
what the world calls an upright life. But the require- 
ments for entering the Mysteries are far more exact- 
ing. Ere he can safely enter the more advanced 
stages of occultism he must learn to control the cur- 
rents of his thoughts, as well as his words and acts. 
Hence The Order of the 15 helps its pupils to gain 
a higher conception of purity on all planes, especially 
in their ideas in regard to the use of the Great Cre- 
ative Force. 

Object 4. The Esoteric Interpretation of the 
Bible. 

While many orders, societies and organizations 
base their teachings upon various Eastern scriptures 
or medieval teachings, this Order teaches that the 
Christian Bible contains the same spiritual teachings 
and the same occult philosophy found in the older 
scriptures. Futhermore, it is couched in terms which 
appeal to the Western type of mind, once the esoteric 
key to its symbology and mysticism is known. This 



Preface xxv 

key The Order of the 15 gives to its students, thus en- 
abling them to apply the underlying laws of every 
parable, allegory and miracle to their own spiritual 
growth. 

Object 5. Training the Senses to Respond to 
Vibrations from All Planes. 

This Order offers no formulas or exercises for de- 
veloping psychic powers, teaching that all such facul- 
ties should evolve gradually as a natural result of 
normal spiritual growth, hence they should not be 
sought for or forced through special forms of con- 
centration, "sitting for development," etc. But as 
the Soul evolves the senses must respond to higher 
notes of vibration and awaken to higher states of con- 
sciousness. When this occurs the pupil must be taught 
both how to protect himself from the many dangers 
of the psychic realm and also how to make the best- 
use of the newly acquired powers in furthering his 
spiritual growth. Perhaps the earliest recognition 
the pupil has of the divine guidance of his Father-in- 
heaven is through symbolic dreams and visions. The 
Teacher of the Order aids the pupil in interpreting 
such spiritual lessons until he is sufficiently versed in 
the language of symbology and methods of interpre- 
tation to grasp the lesson for himself. This work is 
a part of the personal correspondence with the Teacher 
of the Order. 

Object 6. Preparation for the Coming World 
Teacher, the Avatar. 

Like nearly all advanced thinkers along spiritual 
lines and all advanced spiritual movements of today, 
The Order of the 15 expects a great spiritual Teacher 
to appear on earth during the early years of this cen- 



xxvi Preface 

tury. Hence one of the main objects of this Order is so 
to train its pupils that, through their own intuitions 
they may learn to recognize and respond to the influ- 
ence of that Great Teacher upon the higher planes so 
that when the days of the famine come, "not a famine 
of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the 
words of the Lord," the days when "they shall run 
to and fro to seek the word of the Lord," the days 
which precede the coming of the Avatar, they shall not 
be deceived but shall find and know. Only by a recog- 
nition of that Great Teacher upon the higher planes 
or by recognizing Him through His teachings can hu- 
manity hope to know Him when He appears in the 
flesh. 

Object 7. Special Training in Recognizing the 
Oneness of Truth Wherever Found. 

While we have heard much of Universal Brother- 
hood and its various methods of attainment, from the 
Reign of Terror to the present day, still this Order 
teaches a new conception of this much to be desired 
state. Since the human race reflects Truth, like a 
diamond reflects light, through many facets, Universal 
Brotherhood can never be achieved by all men think- 
ing alike. Nor do we believe such an achievement de- 
sirable, for in Nature we find perfect Brotherhood 
expressed in many forms, the oak and the violet at its 
root receive the life-force from the same soil, air, 
water and sunshine, yet each develop to perfection. In 
the same way The Order of the 15 strives to send out 
the One Life and permits each Soul to assimilate it 
and grow to the perfection of his own individuality in 
perfect freedom. Hence our idea of Universal Broth- 
erhood is universal recognition of the oneness of 
Truth in its various expressions or unity in diversity, 
thereby manifesting perfect tolerance toward all. 



INTRODUCTION. 

"How often would I have gathered thy children 
together, as a hen doth gather her brood under 
her wings, and ye would not !" St. Luke XIII. 34. 

The Egyptians recognized and adored the Produc- 
tive Principle, both in Nature and in man, under the 
symbol of Isis, the Universal Mother, the power of 
bringing forth in humanity the Divine Child or The 
Christ. The title of this volume indicates that its 
teachings are designed to bring forth in humanity a 
new conception of the spiritual life through the devel- 
opment of the Mother-love, that divine feminine-prin- 
ciple of the Soul which brings forth in the daily life. 

Isis was also called the "Mother of God," the "Ce- 
lestial Virgin" and the "Queen of Heaven," just as 
her counterpart, the Virgin Mary, is among Christian 
peoples, and was usually represented carrying in her 
hand the crux ansata. It was none other than Cyril, 
Bishop of Alexandria, who openly embraced the 
cause of Isis and anthropomorphized her into Mary, 
Mother of God. 1 While we do not worship Isis or 
Mary as a personality, yet we recognize that which 
they symbolize. For it is only by a recognition of 
the Mother-principle of Love and Compassion that we 
can bring forth The Christ-child individually in our 
hearts and lives, and collectively in humanity. 

(1) Isis Unveiled, Blavatsky, Vol. II; 41. 



xxviii Introduction 

Heretofore most teachings of a relig-io-philosophic 
character have been given out as from the intellectual 
or Father aspect of Truth, and have in a measure 
appalled humanity by a sense of the great gulfs to be 
crossed and the great heights to be attained ere the 
Father's house is reached. But in this volume the 
teachings are presented as from the lips of a loving, 
tender mother taking her children into her arms, weak, 
sinful and disobedient though they be, and helping 
them over the hard places by teaching them at her 
knee how, by the mastery of the little things of daily 
life, they shall, step by step, attain to the status of the 
Divine Manhood exemplified in the Father. 

This volume is composed of the monthly lessons sent 
out by The Order of the 15, considerably elaborated 
and enlarged. The lessons in this volume will no longer 
be issued separately in pamphlet form. These teach- 
ings are presented in Love and Compassion with the 
earnest desire to sympathize with and help upward 
and onward the Mother's struggling sons and daugh- 
ters. The Great Mother holds out her arms to all her 
children, be they Pagan, Jew, Christian or non-Chris- 
tian, recognizing that each child must feed at its Moth- 
er's breast and partake of the milk of her love and sym- 
pathy no matter what the circumstances of his or her 
physical life, or what their religious training. 

These teachings will appeal most strongly to those 
whose hearts can recognize the great Mother-love 
now being poured out upon the world to prepare it 
for the coming of the great spiritual Teacher or Avatar 
who is soon to appear and who will promulgate the 
teachings for the coming sixth sub-race and prepare a 
nucleus for the Sixth Great Race. 



THE VOICE OF ISIS 



CHAPTER I. 

life's duties. 

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with 
thy might/' — Ecclesiastes, IX-10. 

"Believe thou not that sitting in dark forests, in 
proud seclusion and apart from men ; believe thou 
not that life on roots and plants, that thirst as- 
suaged with the snow from the great Range — be- 
lieve thou not, O Devotee, that this will lead thee 
to the goal of final liberation." — The Voice of the 
Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment I. 
Many students of the higher life find themselves 
surrounded by conditions which absolutely preclude 
their devoting themselves to study and to the ob- 
servances which seem necessary for self-development. 
Life often seems to press so heavily upon them that 
both body and mind are wearied to the point of ex- 
haustion, and both men and women are reduced to a 
state of beasts of burden. Yet even here let us seek a 
remedy. 

There are two classes of duties, the real duties 
which must be performed and the mere superfluities 
of life which we are wont to call duties but which 
we voluntarily impose upon ourselves. No real 
duty is given you which you have not the strength 
to perform or without a purpose to be gained by its 
performance. Real duties do not exhaust you, for 
"as thy days, so shall thy strength be." Instead of 
letting any duty arouse in your mind the thought that 
it can by any possibility separate you from the Inner 



30 The Voice of I sis 

Light or from your spiritual development or your 
real advance along the Path or prevent you from 
drawing close and learning Wisdom at the Master's 
feet, realize that it would be impossible for you to 
take one step onward zvhile you were leaving any real 
duty undone. "But to attain true renunciation of 
action without devotion through action is difficult, O 
thou of mighty arms ; while the devotee who is en- 
gaged in the right practice of his duties approacheth 
the Supreme Spirit in no long time." x 

The second class are imaginary duties, or self- 
imposed tasks, which cater only to superfluities and 
are fulfilled simply to propitiate the world's opinion. 
The first duty of each student of the higher life is to 
make a careful analysis and decide what are real and 
what are superficial duties, then to so order his life 
that the real, vital and first duty of caring for his Im- 
mortal Soul will not be crowded out. To do this he 
must look upon duty in a new light. Many persons, 
recognizing the false light in which duty has been pre- 
sented, strive to do away with it altogether, saying 
that nothing should be done that is not a joyful 
service. While we agree with this view for a certain 
stage of development, still it is often necessary to re- 
quire children to perform duties which later in life 
they find to be joyful service. All real duties con- 
front you because in your evolution you have set up 
conditions which make just these tasks necessary to 
build into your Soul certain qualities in which you 
are lacking. In short, they are the result of the 
great Law of Karma, and without the lessons they teach 
your character is incomplete. Hence, they are the 
things which, when they are performed and the qual- 
ities they are meant to develop are incorporated into 

1 Bhagavad Gita, Chapter V. 



Life's Duties 31 

your being, will give you the strength and ability 
to take your next step. 

We hear many say that household cares or business 
duties occupy so much of their time that they can- 
not find time to enter the Silence, hence, there is 
no use trying to live the higher life, since the many 
interruptions make it impossible. Instead of taking 
such an attitude of mind, realize that such duties and 
interruptions are your task and make them yield you 
their lesson. Every morning select some text or 
thought and fix your mind upon it during the day, 
making every task, be it ever so trifling, yield some- 
thing toward the main idea. If you are seeking poise, 
take for your daily meditation the thought of Divine 
Love. Think of this expressing itself as calmness, 
unchanged and unmoved by anything. If constant 
interruptions occur, realize that perhaps they furnish 
just the lesson you need i. e., the power to remain calm 
interiorly in the face of outward activity. Since all 
real duties are your task in them lies your opportunity 
and in their proper performance lies your victory. 
Not in the performance merely, but in the attitude of 
mind you hold toward them and the manner of their 
performance. If you perform a duty because you 
are compelled to and fail to incorporate its lesson in 
your heart, at your next step you will find yourself 
confronted by another duty of the same general char- 
acter but far more difficult of performance, and this 
will continue until you not only perform the duty 
but gain the lacking quality of Soul this duty is in- 
tended to inculcate. If business cares seem to hold 
you in a net of sordid money getting, learn from them 
the lesson of persistence; that just as no complica- 
tion in business life can daunt you, so in your spiritual 
life nothing shall prevent you from obtaining spiritual 



32 The Voice of Isis 

gold. Teach your subconscious mind to know and 
realize that only that which can be brought to The 
Christ for His blessing is legitimate. Learn to have 
faith that you shall achieve if you learn this lesson. 
There is one real duty which confronts all students 
of the higher life that cannot be ignored, i. e., to de- 
cide just what avenue of help is most beneficial, not 
only to their own advancement, but also the one which 
brings the greatest amount of practical help to hu- 
manity. It is not enough to say that you can gain 
good from all sources, for while that may be true, 
still your personal development is not the first duty 
that confronts you, for that comes as a result of living 
The Christ-life and trying to help humanity. While 
you should do the individual duties presented to you, 
you should also lend your forces to increase the power 
of the organized movements put forth by the Masters 
of Wisdom for the help of humanity. Such organ- 
ized movements are like great rivers which although 
they depend upon tiny springs and streamlets for vol- 
ume, yet unite these into something far different from 
and of far greater usefulness than the individual 
springs and streamlets contributing to them. Hence, 
your first duty is conscientiously, prayerfully and 
earnestly to seek for the special channel through 
which you desire to help humanity, and when found 
throw into that channel all you have to give, whether 
it be money — the easiest of all things to give — or love, 
devotion and thought, or service. Fear not to seek. 
"The pilgrim who would cool his weary limbs in run- 
ning waters, yet dares not plunge for terror of the 
stream, risks to succumb from heat. Inaction based 
on selfish fear can bear but evil fruit." No Soul can 
consciously advance who is not helping in the up- 
lifting of all. 



Life's Duties 33 

If you cannot find time to enter the Silence, still 
no power in heaven or earth can keep the Silence from 
entering into you if you will let it, for the Silence is 
the peace of God that passeth understanding. While 
doing the duties of the day your mind need not be 
chained to them. It is not what your hands are do- 
ing, but what your heart is worshiping that determines 
your growth. If you make business or household cares 
your God, you will, of necessity, retard your more 
rapid spiritual advance; for as long as you are wor- 
shiping a false God your spiritual evolution is being 
retarded. "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me." 
If, on the contrary, you make of your duties step- 
ping-stones to the real worship of your heart, you will 
find them a great help. Hands and mind may both 
be occupied, but while using them, and in the very 
performance of the task, and because it is hampering, 
you must dive deep into the Divine and seek in your 
own heart for the sustaining power and not depend 
upon earthly surroundings to bring it to you, just as a 
tree which finds itself planted in a crevice of a rock 
must send its roots down deep to seek the streams 
that are hidden from sight ere it can maintain its 
growth. Under such circumstances, the tree often 
attains greater perfection than one planted on the 
plain, for the streams that run deep are refreshing and 
uncontaminated, and are unfailing. 

If you are persistent and determined in this seek- 
ing you will gain more growth from meeting every- 
thing as it comes to you than one who can sit for hours 
in silence, yet who has not learned to control the chil- 
dren of his own brain. There is no duty higher than 
the one which lies nearest, provided it be a real duty. 
It is not a real duty to try to relieve another from 
doing his plain duty, for "It is better to do one's own 



34 The Voice of Isis 

duty, even though it be devoid of excellence, than to 
perform another's duty well. It is better to perish in 
the performance of one's own duty ; the duty of another 
is full of danger." * Like the children of Israel who 
had each to gather manna for himself alone and could 
gather only enough for one day, so is each one 
given strength to perform all the real duties of each 
day. But if this strength is wasted in assumed duties or 
is used up in doing for another that which it is neces- 
sary for his development that he do for himself, then 
you are depleted and your duties, like the manna gath- 
ered in excess, 2 become a menace to your growth 
rather than a help. 

The object of evolution is to gain Wisdom out of 
every condition. Whatever the condition that con- 
fronts you, know well that it will never leave you until 
you have gained the Wisdom it is intended to teach. 
Everything that comes to you in the way of trouble 
and sorrow is simply the result of your own shortcom- 
ings, or a lack of some Soul-quality which only such 
experiences can teach you. In fact, this is the under- 
lying idea of Karma; not that it is a punishment or 
even an inevitable law of suffering which you must 
endure to the end, but that in the course of your evolu- 
tion your Higher Self finds that you lack certain Soul- 
qualities, hence chooses to incarnate in certain families 
and under certain conditions which will bring out the 
Soul-qualities which are lacking. If you refuse to rec- 
ognize the lesson, or run away from the conditions ere 
they are conquered, you will have to meet them again 
and again in various forms in this and other lives un- 
til the victory is gained. Remember, that the hard 
conditions of the environment are deliberately chosen 

1 The Bhagavad Gita, Chapter III. 

a ''But some of them left of it until the morning and it bred worms, 
and stank."— Exodus, XVI-20. 



Life's Duties 35 

by the Soul that it may quickly gain the qualities 
needed. The instant this is done the Law is fulfilled, 
hence there is no Karma or anything else that can hold 
you to those conditions. 

Only thus can you find self-poise, for self-poise is 
the result of self-knowledge. The instant you begin 
to see that it is yourself who is responsible for all the 
disturbing influences that are around you and that it 
rests with you to correct them, then you have begun 
in the right way to gain self-poise. The first thing to 
be gained is self-recognition. When buffeted by cir- 
cumstances you are apt to blame your sufferings upon 
your conditions or upon others, or to think some Divine 
Power is punishing you, for it is most difficult to face 
yourself and recognize that the trouble lies in you. But 
while this is difficult to realize, still it is comforting 
to know that if the fault is within, the remedy also lies 
within. Once recognize this and really learn the lesson 
— not only mentally but intuitively — and you no longer 
have to experience the adverse conditions. 

When an earthen vessel is to be used, only a cer- 
tain amount of fire is needed to harden and prepare 
the clay. But if it is a golden vessel to be placed upon 
the King's table it must pass through a seven-times 
heated furnace and be hammered and tested and puri- 
fied until the gold is without a flaw; then it must be 
fashioned into the shape best adapted to its purpose. 
So is it with the vessel of clay which we call our per- 
sonality. There must be all kinds of vessels and each 
must have the preparation best adapted to its uses. 

All Wisdom gained from earthly experience is meant 
to help unfold your dormant faculties and make the per- 
sonality one with its Father-in-heaven. There is noth- 
ing that confronts you that is not a step in this great 
journey called the "Cycle of Necessity." Therefore, 



36 The Voice of Isis 

realize that it is not your tasks or duties that weary 
you or retard your evolution, but your attitude of mind 
toward them, the permitting of everyday trifles to so 
occupy your mind that you never let them go. 

The little joys of life are just as satisfying as the 
little cares are annoying. While you are facing the lit- 
tle cares watch out for the little joys. Many little 
joys wake the heart until like a glorious blossom it 
opens to the sun. If you dwell in the little joys they 
. run together and soon break out into a mighty soul- 
satisfying happiness which will be like a strong, deep 
undercurrent of joy bearing you through all the cares 
and sorrows of life. Remember this and begin at once 
to look for every ripple of sunshine — open the doors 
and let it in. 

In every heart there is a well so deep and still that 
it can reflect only one star at a time, and this star, what- 
ever it be, is, for the time it is reflected there, the 
guiding star of your destiny. Just as a great telescope 
can sweep the heavens and focus upon any star de- 
sired, so can you have for your ruling star anything 
you determine to focus upon. If your star be house- 
hold worries, a desire to live in the same style as your 
neighbors, to expand your business, or the love and 
worship of money, or any other condition, even the 
worship of a personality, while it reigns it shuts out 
the light from all other stars. "Ye cannot serve God 
and mammon." Whatever it is that is reflected in this 
deep well of your inmost heart is the God you are 
worshiping; for worship is constant thought of the 
thing worshiped, a constant filling of the under-cur- 
rents of your mind with it, laying upon the shrine and 
offering to that which you worship 8( your best efforts 
and thoughts. Whatever it is that occupies these deep 
undercurrents, whatever is poured into the deep places 



Life's Duties 37 

of your nature, even subconsciously — something that is 
always there no matter how busy you may be on the 
surface — that is what you are worshiping, for it is that 
for which you are giving your life- and thought-force 
to create. By these currents of force you are literally 
moulding the atoms of your bodies into vehicles 
through which that which you worship can manifest. 
You also create around yourself an auric world in 
which your dominant thought will be king and all 
else subservient, no matter how much lip-service is 
given to other things. 

' There is only one thing that you can rightly place 
in the Holy Sanctuary and hope that it will dwell 
there forever, and that is The Christ. Let The Christ 
be king over all your thoughts, aspirations and de- 
sires and all things shall be cared for. "He who 
seeth me in all things and all things in me looseneth 
not his hold on me and I forsake him not. And 
whosoever, believing in spiritual unity, worshippeth 
me who am in all things, dwelleth with me in what- 
soever condition he may be." * 

The little things of life may occupy the surface of 
your thoughts, but underneath all, in the Holy Sanctu- 
ary, The Christ dwelleth, and The Christ careth for 
all things. Your home, your children, your business, 
your petty cares are all but ripples on the surface, 
while deep down in the shrine of your heart dwells 
The Christ. Once having found this Holy of Holies 
and placed therein the One who alone is worthy of 
your worship, no matter how busy you are or how 
occupied with worldly cares, in an instant your con- 
ciousness can enter that sacred place and find rest 
and peace and communion. Then nothing can really 
fret you, for you carry the Silence within you. The 

*The Bhagavad Git*, Chapter VI. 



38 The Voice of Isis 

winds and tempests of earth only ripple the surface. 
In the deep places all is peace and calm. You have 
no fear, for you have entered the Silence and have 
felt the strength and comfort and power of The Christ 
within. You know that His love pervades your life 
and all are safe in His keeping. All things are safe 
and sure. The trials of your business and your home 
do not upset you now, for you know how to keep calm, 
where to find peace. 

The moment you find yourself getting disturbed, 
slip back into this calm, quiet interior place and find 
refreshment. Let the radiance of this center fill your 
life. The Christ is there, and no matter how the 
storm rages on the surface or how you rock in the 
little boat of your personality on the storm-tossed sea 
of life, still you know that at the first call for help 
you will see The Christ walking on the water and will 
hear the command, "Peace, be still." 



CHAPTER II. 

THE CYCLE OF FULFILLMENT 

"And then shall appear the sign of the Son of 
man in heaven : and then shall all the tribes of the 
earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man 
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and 
great glory." St. Matthew XXIV. 30. 

The year 1912 marks the beginning of a most im- 
portant era in the history of the world. As the earth, 
in its yearly journey around the sun, passes through 
a sign of the zodiac each month, so does our solar 
system during its great journey around the central 
sun of this universe (Alcyone), pass through each 
sign of the zodiac; but in this greater cycle, instead 
of a month, our solar system requires approximately 
2170 years to traverse each sign. In this great jour- 
ney our solar system has reached and is now entering 
the sign Aquarius, the Man from the East, one of 
the four sacred animals of Ezekiel and the Apocalypse, 
also one of the four great divisions of the mundane 
cross. On February seventh, 1912, the mystic planet 
Uranus also entered this sign, its own house, where 
it will remain about seven years. Hence the year 1912 
marks the beginning of the first period of the Cycle 
of Fulfillment for this present sub-race. 

The word fulfillment sends a thrill of joy through 
the heart, but let us consider a wider meaning of the 
word. A fulfillment is a just compensation for that 
which has been accomplished or attempted, a reaping 
of that which has been sown, both good and evil. 
A fulfillment is not a recompense for mere suffering 
endured, for suffering of itself has no purifying or 



40 The Voice of his 

uplifting power, it is uplifting only when the lesson 
which necessitated it has been learned and the lacking 
Soul-quality has been built into the character. This 
planet has passed through much suffering and has 
had its lessons to learn, both as a living entity (the 
informing principle of the planet) and through its 
inhabitants. 

Moses the great law-giver commanded the Lord's 
chosen people that, after the completion of every 
seventh sabbath of years, they should celebrate the fol- 
lowing year as a Year of Jubilee. This mystic cycle ob- 
served literally every fiftieth year has the same sig- 
nificance as the Cycle of Fulfillment. During the Year 
of Jubilee all debtors were released from prison and all 
slaves set free, and in this Cycle of Fulfillment all the 
forces, powers and capacities within the individual, 
the Race and the planet, which have been imprisoned 
for indebtedness to the Law, will be released. This 
does not mean, however, that any will be exempted 
from paying karmic debts, but that those who were 
in prison to the Law for debts will be released or given 
an opportunity to work them out during this period. 

The lower aspects of all these powers and forces 
must first be reaped and the adjustment made upon 
the lower planes ere the higher phases of the fulfill- 
ment can be brought about. The reaping of the har- 
vest has already begun, but ere it can be garnered into 
the great granary it must pass through the winnowing ; 
the chaff and dirt must be blown away and only the 
golden grain remain. The elements have been cast into 
the crucible and the fires must burn until all the baser 
elements rise to the surface and are removed ere the 
gold can be purified for the King's use. 

The influence of Uranus in Aquarius will bring to 
the world many great and sudden changes, both in the 



The Cycle of Fulfillment 41 

physical conditions of the planet and in the mental 
and psychic realms of its inhabitants. "A partial cat- 
aclysm occurs at the close of every 'age' of the world, 
they say, which does not destroy the latter, but only 
changes its general appearance. New races of men 
and animals and a new flora evolve from the dissolu- 
tion of the precedent ones." 1 The earth will have to 
endure not only changes in climate, terrible storms and 
disasters of every sort, but also cataclysmic changes in 
its crust ere the adjustment to the new vibration is 
accomplished and the earth is prepared as a dwelling 
place for the New Humanity. 

The great Law of Divine Harmony 2 is forever work- 
ing in a seven-fold manner, as (1) order, (2) com- 
pensation, (3) karma, (4) vibration, (5) cycles, (6) 
polarity and (7) balance. It will be noted that vi- 
bration stands in the center of these manifestations 
of the Law. It is Fohat, the Breath of Eternal Mo- 
tion or Thor's Hammer, the Swastika, by the action 
of which the sparks of life are thrown off. The seven 
aspects are like separate ingredients put into a vessel 
that bread may be made. Until the motion of mixing 
(vibration) brings about an amalgamation and change 
of conditions in the ingredients they do not become 
dough but remain flour, yeast, salt, water, etc. Thus 
through vibration must the Law in its entirety bring 
about the fulfillment of all earth conditions. Every- 
thing, from the planets to the tiniest grain of sand or 
microscopic bacterium, has its rate of vibration (key- 
note) and its cyclic motion. The orbits of the planets 
may be called their cycles of vibration, the wave- 
length of their oscillation, but within those great oscil- 
lations there are many, many lesser vibrations (cycles) 
as the minute and the second vibrate within the hour 

1 Isis Unveiled, Blavatsky, Vol. II, 424. 
» See Chapter XIV. 



42 The Voice of Isis 

A wind storm has its rate of vibration or key-note, 
and everything within its path, while vibrating to its 
own key-note, must vibrate in harmony with the domi- 
nant note of the storm or be swept away. This planet 
in fulfilling the Law as vibration and cycles has reached 
a point in the zodiac where it is entering into new con- 
ditions ; where it must respond to a new key-note, its 
Cycle of Fulfillment, and fulfill the Law in its entirety 
or be swept away. As it responds to this new vibra- 
tion everything upon it must accommodate itself to the 
new conditions. The failure of certain factors to adapt 
themselves will bring about the storms and cataclysmic 
changes which will adjust conditions to the new note 
with startling suddenness, just as a tree which remains 
rigid and refuses to adapt itself to the storm will be 
suddenly broken off or uprooted. 

Every planet in its course of development has to 
meet the forces sent forth from all the starry worlds 
and systems. Those which are in advance of it will 
send to it overwhelming force, almost greater than it 
can bear, while those which are less advanced will draw 
from it with a grasping force. But there comes a time 
in the life of every planet, as well as in the life of 
every individual, when a crisis is reached. In the 
case of a planet this point is generally reached toward 
the close of the Fifth or the beginning of the Sixth 
Great Race. Then every effort is made to tear it to 
pieces ; all the forces, both within and without, are 
exerted in an attempt at disruption, an attempt to 
tear the planet or individual into separate fragments. 
Only those who can endure this great cosmic testing 
and come out of the fiery ordeal alive can survive and 
continue their evolution. The heavens are full of wan- 
dering comets, asteroids and fragments of planets, all 
that is left of worlds which have gone to pieces under 



The Cycle ef Fulfillment 43 

this great test. These fragments are destined to spend 
eons of time wandering in space ere they can once more 
be gathered together and obtain the force necessary 
to become a planet, or until they are drawn into some 
evolving planet whose vibrations are in harmony with 
theirs. 

Great alchemical changes are transpiring within and 
around the earth that will terminate in cataclysms of 
periodic activity. These are not altogether malign in- 
fluences, for among the stars astronomy and astrology 
agree that there are no malign and no beneficent plan- 
ets, in the ordinarily accepted meaning of the terms ; all 
is Cosmic Law. The peculiar force exerted by every 
star in the firmament upon every other star is just that 
force which is needed for each particular star's well 1 
being at the time. The earth today, in entering the 
first period of its Cycle of Fulfillment, is meeting the 
influence of stars whose force and light have been 
traveling for ages and ages, but which are only just 
now beginning to penetrate its atmosphere. Some of 
these forces might be called malign and some bene- 
ficent, but the influence of each is necessary to the 
earth's evolution. The coming of these forces is not 
accidental, nor are they coming in a haphazard manner. 
Millions and millions of eons ago, ere this earth was 
reborn, ere the Sons of Mind breathed into the evolu- 
tion of this planet the Breath of Divine Life, those 
distant firmaments were set in their particular and ap- 
pointed places and the influences sent out from their 
centers were so timed as to reach the newborn earth 
at the exact period when those particular forces would 
be needed to push it on toward its fulfillment. Con- 
ceive of a constant pressure exerted upon the earth's 
surface from all the planets and stars, and at the same 
time a pressure from within, a force going outward to 



44 The Voice of I sis 

impinge upon all the stars. v As long as these forces are 
evenly distributed the result is that the earth's crust 
becomes more and more consolidated and at the same 
time purified. Because of this pressure many alchemi- 
cal changes are taking place. Liquids are being trans- 
formed into solids ; solids are being transmuted into 
gases and gases are becoming luminous ether and so 
forth. Thus the earth is slowly being prepared to be- 
come a sun. In its present state, were the earth sub- 
jected to the forces which operate through a sun, it 
would be instantly volatilized into a cloud of gaseous 
matter. It must be tested and tried ; not as a punish- 
ment, but as a necessary preparation for its work as 
a sun. No planet can become a shining, burning sun 
until it has passed this crucial test, until the without 
and the within are perfectly balanced and have com- 
pacted it into a state that nothing can destroy or, in 
occult parlance, until it has become the "Diamond 
Heart." Only when a planet has obtained at-one- 
ment or has assimilated all the forces of the stars and 
planets and all the inter-stellar spaces, can it be said 
to have conquered and become a sun, ready to take 
its place in the grand procession around the Central 
Sun. The sun of this solar system is such a con- 
queror and all the planets and stars of our cosmos 
are in varying stages or degrees of development to- 
ward this great end. 

So must it be with you. The pressure from with- 
out cannot harm you if the within be properly bal- 
anced. When the forces from within are balanced 
the outer pressure will only strengthen the individual- 
ity and make you better fitted to become Sons of God. 
Keep the within balanced and, like the needle to the 
pole, steadily polarized to The Christ-force, so that 
nothing can move you. Gather the forces that are 



The Cycle of Fulfillment 45 

sent against you, recognize them as necessary for 
your evolution, and turn them to your advantage. 

The influence which each star exerts is determined 
by the thought-force generated by its inhabitants, just 
as the influence of each individual is the sum total of 
the thoughts he continually harbors ; for the aura of 
a man or a planet is the sum total of the thought-at- 
mosphere created by or attracted to it. The influence 
of the earth upon the cosmos is said to be malign. 
The struggle for supremacy, the selfishness, the greed 
for gold and the vileness into which the misuse of the 
serpent-power has plunged its inhabitants naturally 
emanate a malign influence; but nevertheless the 
earth has a great potency for good, owing to the won- 
derful possibilities residing in a characteristic that is 
only just beginning to be comprehended, i. e., the 
result of the great test which the humanity of this 
globe must pass through. The earth is said to be 
malefic because upon her bosom is fought out the 
great struggle between good and evil. It is here 
that the Great Initiator (Saturn) stands. This is 
his plane of manifestation. Here it is that human- 
ity is confronted with the great problem of the crea- 
tive power of sex and its higher possibilities, to- 
gether with its temptations and its power to degrade 
and debase. But through the lessons learned by its 
terrible suffering humanity is raised to a higher state. 
The overcoming and the learning of the lessons of the 
creative power will give not only to man, but also 
to the planet upon which this battle is waged, a glo- 
rious place in the cosmos. Therefore, instead of the 
earth being malign, the influence it sends out is one 
of patient endurance and determined victory. Vic- 
tory over discouragement is one of the greatest 
victories man can win. For this reason this planet 



46 The Voice of I sis 

sends out into space the most wonderful melody of 
all the planets, for only here is the chord of suffering 
endured and discouragement conquered blended with 
the key-note of the globe, the earth being the only 
planet that has a bass clef of suffering to complete 
its chord. 

The earth is the eighth note in the celestial scale, 
and like the eighth note in music, while it completes 
one octave it becomes the first note in a new and 
higher octave. Ultimately the earth will stand forth 
as the brightest sun in this system, in fact it will be- 
come a Pole Star and reach into an advanced system. 
It will send forth an influence without which the per- 
fect evolution of all the other planetary bodies would 
be incomplete. This earth is the stage upon which 
is to be enacted a new and grander drama of life, and 
today the characters in the drama are being assem- 
bled and the stage is being set. 

The year 1912 is therefore but the dawn of the 
Cycle of Fulfillment, the time prophesied in the text 
quoted at the head of this lesson ; the Sign of the Son of 
Man. This sign is none other than the celestial sign 
Aquarius into which we are now entering. The Son of 
Man comes in the heavens because our solar system, 
for the next 2170 years will be passing through this 
sign, during which the forces symbolized by Aquarius 
will be focused upon it. And only after the purifica- 
tion, when all "the tribes of the earth mourn" can 
come the "power and great glory" of the fulfillment 
or the attainment of the Wisdom of the Divine Man. 
This sign is represented by a man pouring water upon 
the earth, symbolic of the fulfillment which comes as 
a result of the pouring out of the Mother-force 
(water). In Nature water is the chief factor which 
makes the earth bring forth, while in man that which 



The Cycle of Fulfillment 47 

is symbolized by water — the great Mother-principle — 
brings forth spiritual fruits. 

Since this is the Cycle of Fulfillment for the planet, 
the same conditions must necessarily affect its inhab- 
itants. As man is the microcosm of the macrocosm he 
has within himself centers which should respond to 
every vibration of the planet. Hence as the earth 
strikes its new key-note man must vibrate or attune 
himself to it or be storm swept by his failure, just as 
the fruit and leaves of certain trees are stripped from 
the branches by a storm which only strengthens other 
trees. 

All nations are today feeling the necessity of ad- 
justing themselves to the new conditions upon which 
humanity as a whole is entering. This is especially 
noticeable in the political conditions in China, Persia, 
Turkey, Portugal and Mexico and in the industrial con- 
ditions in England, Germany, France and America. 
We may expect such turbulent conditions to continue 
until every nation makes the necessary adjustment 
to the note of the Brotherhood of Man or is swept 
away, as the ancient government of China has been. 

Within the nations every organization and move- 
ment, whether political, economic, philanthropic, phil- 
osophical, religious, mystical or whatnot, must be 
shaken to its foundations, must have all the dead leaves 
of old ideas and conditions stripped from it and prove 
whether it be founded upon the eternal principles of 
truth, justice, unselfishness, love and brotherhood or 
upon the dictates of selfishness, ambition, injustice 
and greed. 1 And within the ranks of all organized 
efforts of mankind each individual will have to face 
similar testings and adjustments, modified by his or 
her Karma, to prove the nature and worth of the 

1 Since the first publication of this lesson (January, 1912) this pre- 
diction has been remarkably fulfilled in many directions. 



48 The Voice of Isis 

principles of life he or she is following. But above 
all, the new conditions will affect all those who have 
devoted themselves to the study of the occult, who are 
delving into the deeper mysteries of Being, who are 
trying to live The Christ-life. For out of these must 
be gathered the mystic hundred and forty and four 
thousand who shall have the Father's name written in 
their foreheads (opening of the Third Eye). 

Many individuals find themselves suffering from 
poverty, sickness or persistent adversities until hope 
seems dead. This is because they have turned their 
backs upon the world and hence find all the world 
against them. They no longer serve the world and it 
no longer rewards them. They suffer because, having 
turned from the world, they have not yet sounded the 
key-note of the new life by which alone they can enter 
into its rewards. They are passing over the interval 
between the two notes, and it will be longer or shorter 
according to their ability to awaken to the new vibra- 
tion. This period is symbolized in occult literature 
by the Great Abyss. There is, however, a narrow 
bridge over this Abyss builded of naked swords, which 
leads to the Eternal City, over which all must walk with 
bleeding feet. But there is a Hand to guide and a 
Voice to cheer you if you but seek them in the darkness. 
It is always darkest just before the dawn. All old kar- 
mic conditions must be swept away ere the new era 
can manifest. Let no earnest seeker after Wisdom 
grow discouraged, but hold fast to the guiding Hand 
and trust to the Power which shall bring him safely 
through. 

The earth could no more bear the whole force of a 
sun without being consumed than you, as individuals 
or this Movement today as a unit, could express that 
which you are destined to express. Nor could you 



The Cycle of Fulfillment 49 

now stand in the fires of spiritual force which you must 
ultimately transmit any more than the inhabitants of the 
earth could live upon it were it suddenly to take its 
place as a sun. At some period you must be Sons of 
Righteousness, but you must grow into it. You must 
be brave to endure the growing pains ; for you will 
never find the Place of Peace which will balance and 
hold all the forces under perfect control if you cannot 
endure the testing, learn the Wisdom and gain the 
blessings that every battle holds for you. Find the 
Place of Peace. Make the pressure within evenly and 
perfectly balanced that the pressure from without may 
strengthen you. Be calm and rest in the midst of 
the storm. Realize the absolute calm and rest which 
dwells in the midst of a vortex. Repeat constantly : "I 
am strong. I can conquer. My forces are not scat- 
tered because they are evenly balanced and under per- 
fect control." Then will the forces that come against 
you form a protecting aura of strength and power 
which nothing harmful can enter. Let this be your 
watchword: "I am balanced. I am calm. If the Law 
be with me who can be against me?" If you can gain 
this realization, have no fear for the result. 

Once let your consciousness realize, if only for a 
moment, the peace and power of Divine Love, and 
you have donned a shield and buckler which shall 
preserve you in the day of trial. Some day you will 
find your consciousness functioning within that radi- 
ant center where Love is all-creative, and Power 
is omnipotent, and Glory is unspeakable. There you 
shall meet the Great Mother face to face. 



CHAPTER III. 
DEGREES AND ORDERS 

DEGREES OF EVOLUTION. 

Before taking up the spiritual aspects of the teach- 
ings of The Order of the 15, it is necessary to give 
a brief summary of its philosophical and geometrical 
basis. 

This chapter is necessarily somewhat mathematical 
and technical and hence will be more or less difficult 
for some minds, but if any who find it so will care- 
fully re-read it after studying the chapters which fol- 
low they will have little trouble in grasping its de- 
tails. Its importance at the beginning of the book 
is that in it is set forth an outline of The Order of the 
15, the reasons for its existence and its name, its re- 
lations to other Orders and its special work in the 
Grand Plan. 

It is said that "God geometrizes." This is a truth 
founded on the fact, already well demonstrated by 
science, that all forces flow and act along geometrical 
lines. This is as true of the forces which create a 
world as of those which create a snow crystal. The 
cosmos — the known universe — is composed of seven 
degrees or states of matter. These states of matter 
correspond to the seven states of consciousness into 
which all manifestations of the One Life are divided, 
— etheric, mineral, vegetable, animal, human, super- 
human and Divine. 

This seven-fold division of the cosmos is illustrated 
by a plant. It first exists as a seed, in which are latent 
all the powers and possibilities of the mature plant. 



Degrees and Orders 51 

As a seed (its 7th degree) it has only the power to 
imbibe two kinds of food, water (1st kind) and heat 
(2nd kind). These it assimilates and builds into 
growth which bursts the confining shell and permits 
the sprout to be born into the earth (its 6th degree) 
outside its shell. With the development of the sprout 
and roots it is able to select various classes of a new 
food (3rd kind), earth, and develops the strength 
and stability that enables it to be born into the new 
world of air (its 5th degree). Here it puts forth 
special organs, the leaves, to assimilate the new food 
(4th kind), the gases of the air. It thus acquires the 
strength and ability to put forth a bud which soon 
unfolds into a blossom. This blossom opens its heart 
to another world (4th degree), the light, where it 
assimilates still another food (5th kind), the emana- 
tions from the sun. This enables the plant to replace 
its beautiful blossom by the fruit and be born into 
a still higher degree (the 3rd). The fruit now ab- 
sorbs a new food (6th kind) life-essence, which gives 
it the power to sustain life when eaten and thus enter 
a higher degree (the 2nd). As it ripens it absorbs 
still another food (7th kind), the creative power of the 
One Life, which enables it to enter the First Degree, 
manifest the intelligence necessary to register every 
step of its growth and development within the seed, 
store up the potency and create after its kind. 

The matter composing a stone manifests the geo- 
metrical forms of the crystals composing it ; the matter 
composing a daisy will manifest in the geometrical 
form of a daisy ; the matter composing an animal fol- 
lows the lines of that particular species, etc. In the 
expression of these various geometrical forms, states 
of matter and consciousness, each has its own numer- 
ical value. A crystal has a certain characteristic num- 



52 The Voice of Isis 

ber of sides and angles, a daisy a certain number of 
petals, an animal a certain number of tissues, organs, 
senses, etc. The expression of the geometrical law 
of the universe can thus be traced in all the kingdoms, 
for all nature-forms can be analyzed into a few single 
geometrical figures and their combinations. Every 
plant that grows follows certain geometrical lines, 
sending its roots in one direction, its trunk in another 
and its branches in diverse other directions, yet all 
combining to make the perfect tree. 

All growth must be along these lines ; for there 
is but one law of growth behind all manifested forms 
of the One Life. The above illustrates perfectly the 
stages of your own growth ; so, study it carefully 
when you are inclined to be impatient at your prog- 
ress, and realize that all advance is but a growth 
resulting from the assimilation of such food as you 
are able to digest. 

Man the thinker carries this same law into the 
mental world and we find mankind separated into 
seven great classes called Degrees, their sub-divisions 
being called Orders. But it must be remembered that 
these are but convenient terms used to represent the 
conditions under which, and the lines along which, 
evolution takes place just as a daisy is divided into 
root, stalk, leaf and blossom according to its stage of 
growth or degree of evolution, yet all are but parts 
of the one plant. 

Those great spiritual Beings — our Elder Brothers — 
who have evolved through the Orders of the four 
lower great divisions or Degrees and have attained all 
the wisdom to be gained therefrom are now evolving 
in the Orders of the Degrees above the human and 
hence are called Initiates, Adepts, Mahatmas or 
Masters of Wisdom according to Their stage of spir- 
itual evolution. 



Degrees and Orders 53 

The Great White Lodge — which is the aggregate 
of all these Great Souls who, through repeated experi- 
ences and determined effort through many earth lives, 
have obtained Mastery, firstly, over the passions, ap- 
petites and desires of the personal self, and secondly, 
over the forces of their bodies and the life-currents of 
the cosmos — is working back of and within every 
movement in any way benefiting mankind, and is con- 
stantly manipulating currents of force for the advance- 
ment of evolution. This body of Masters is called 
a Lodge because, like a lodge, it is divided into De- 
grees and Orders corresponding to and directly 
connected with the various Degrees and Orders 
of humanity. Every Order in each Degree is 
thoroughly organized for its particular work. The 
Lodge must work in humanity through Degrees 
and Orders corresponding to the lines of its own 
divisions and each Master must work through the 
Degree and Order which corresponds to the one 
in which He finds Himself in the Great White 
Lodge, for such is the geometrical plan of the 
universe, and evolution can advance only along these 
general lines. Every avenue for aiding humanity is 
taken advantage of and every channel is utilized to 
the extent to which it makes its use possible, for 
there is an Order of Mastery affinitized to every stage 
of human evolution. Therefore every movement, 
whether spiritual, ethical, social or political, that is 
working toward the betterment of mankind receives 
inspiration and help from the great Spiritual Beings 
who are affinitized to that particular avenue of help- 
fulness. No matter what lines of constructive thought 
you may be interested in it will be possible for you to 
receive divine inspiration from these Great Teachers 
couched in terms comprehensible to you. In Revela- 



54 The Voice of Isis 

Hon we read that there were twelve thousand sealed 
out of every tribe. This symbol illustrates the above 
mentioned law, namely, that it is possible to reach 
the heights of spiritual attainment (Mastery) out of 
every condition of life, for the twelve tribes of Israel 
symbolize the twelve classes of humanity born under 
the twelve signs of the zodiac. 

Each great Degree of humanity is divided into seven 
steps or Orders, which correspond to the seven notes 
of the musical scale, and the seven color rays of the 
solar spectrum, hence manifest perfect harmony or the 
pure white light of the sun. They are determined 
mathematically and arranged geometrically in accord- 
ance with the One Law, i. e., Divine Harmony, which 
must necessarily act along geometrical lines. Every 
human being manifesting during the present cycle finds 
itself in its proper Order in one of these seven great 
divisions or Degrees. 

THE SEVENTH DEGREE OF HUMANITY. 

This Degree is composed of seven Orders and com- 
prises all entities who have reached the self-conscious 
stage of evolution, but who have not yet progressed 
very far above the animal kingdom. It includes the 
lowest types of savages. The lower Orders of this 7th 
Degree are, as it were, the kindergarten of The Lodge, 
and are just as truly under its guidance and protec- 
tion as are the higher Orders. In fact the lowest Order 
of this Degree overlaps the animal kingdom in that it 
embraces those anthropoid apes which, as the degen- 
erate descendants of certain Lemeuro-Atlantean races, 
contain a spark of the Divine Fire. "Such anthropoids 
form an exception because they were not intended by 
Nature, but are the direct product and creation of 
'senseless' man" x of those early races. "After the mid- 
dle point of the Fourth Race in the Fourth Round on 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky Vol. 1, p. 207. 



Degrees and Orders 55 

our globe — no more Monads can enter the human 
kingdom. The door is closed for this Cycle, and the 
balance struck." 1 Since every spark of the Divine 
Fire is an emanation from a great Master, all en- 
tities containing such a spark, no matter how ob- 
tained, must necessarily be a part of the body of their 
Parent-Master, and their evolution must be watched 
over and guided by Him until they are fitted to become 
one with Him. The higher Orders of this Degree in- 
clude the more advanced members of the lower races 
and those members of the advanced races who may 
have made physical and intellectual progress but who 
still have only a low degree of spiritual development. 

THE 6TH DEGREE. 

The Sixth Degree, with its seven Orders, comprises 
all those in the position of teachers or leaders among 
the different races who are working consciously to- 
ward the betterment of humanity, but who have not 
yet realized their divine guidance or the assistance 
given them by the Masters of Wisdom, and who, per- 
haps, have never heard of The Lodge of Masters. Its 
lowest Orders are composed of those untutored sav- 
ages who, nevertheless, are leading and guiding those 
under them toward their highest conception of Truth, 
while the highest Orders embrace those humanitarian 
or philanthropic workers among the more advanced 
races who are earnestly seeking the physical, moral, 
intellectual, or social betterment of the Race. 

THE 5TH DEGREE. 

The seven Orders of the Fifth Degree include 
those who are more or less interested in esoteric mat- 
ters ; who are not satisfied with the outer manifesta- 
tions of life, but who are seeking for the Soul of 
things ; who have some knowledge of The Lodge as 

1 Ibid. * 205. 



56 The Voice of his 

a fact, and who are studying along general occult or 
mystical lines. 

THE 4TH DEGREE. 

This Degree is graded in sequence according to 
its Orders, and embraces all those earnest students 
and teachers who have taken their lower nature in 
hand and are deliberately striving to lead such a 
spiritual life as will bring them into personal touch 
with the Masters of The Lodge. 

The Third, Second and First Degrees are most 
sacred and above our present comprehension, so it 
will be impossible to consider them at this time. For 
when one enters the Third Degree he has become 
more than human, he has entered the super-human. 
Yet this Degree overlaps the human (Fourth Degree) 
just as the human overlaps the animal. 

THE ORDERS OF THE FOURTH DEGREE. 

Since it is in the Fourth Degree that all who are 
drawn into this Movement are now functioning we 
will consider in some detail the seven steps or Orders 
into which it is divided. The highest Order of the 
lower (Fifth) Degree overlaps the lowest Order of 
the Fourth Degree, just as the eighth note in music is 
the completion of the lower octave and the beginning 
of the succeeding higher octave. 

Admission to the organized work of these Orders 
does not rest with any organization save the Great 
White Lodge, and it alone can grant or withhold 
membership, and it does this upon the inner planes 
with often no outward recognition on the physical 
plane. The object of these Orders of Evolution is the 
spiritualization of matter after the crucifixion is com- 
pleted] 

The mathematical law for the formation of the 
Orders is as follows, each Order taking its name 
from the sum of the digits composing its number: 



Degrees and Orders 



57 



1. 

2. 

3. 
4. 
5. 
6. 

7. 
8. 


Fig. No. 1. 

ORDERS 

1=1 

1+2=3 

1+2+3=6 

1+2+3+4=10 

1+2+3+4+5=15 

1+2+3+4+5+6=21 

1+2+3+4+5+6+7=28 

1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8= 


36 


Fig. No. 2. 
the cross of 

MATTER 
Positive Negative 
1 

3 

6 

10 


15 
21 


28 
36 



The cross was not first introduced in the Christian 
Era, but is the most primitive of all symbols, repre- 
senting the real crucifixion or involution or the descent 
of Spirit into matter where it must be crucified upon 
the mundane cross and pass along the geometrical 
lines of evolution. The cross, being the fourth geomet- 
rical figure, represents the completion of involution, 
the turning point where evolution begins, or the 
Fourth Degree. This cross is also the Tree of Life, 
planted in the midst of the Garden when mankind 
fell into generation, by whose fruit, if ye eat thereof, 
"ye shall become as Gods." We will therefore begin at 
the foot of the cross with the Order of the 36 which 
may be said to be the root of the Tree of Life, or the 
Guardian Wall around the foot of the cross. 

NEGATIVE ORDERS 

THE ORDER OF THE 36. 

This Order is the negative aspect of trie highest 
Order (1) of this Degree or is the point where the 
force of the 1 enters the earth-plane. Naturally the 
persons composing this Order are those who through 
their normal evolution have become aware of The 



58 The Voice of Isis 

Christ-force working in them and in humanity as 
a whole and who have lifted up their eyes to the 
cross and realized something of the meaning of the 
crucifixion upon it. As long as Christendom worships 
The Christ crucified it is but driving the nails more 
firmly, for The Christ is crucified by being immersed 
in matter that matter may be redeemed ; a voluntary 
sacrifice to which man's disobedience has added cruelty 
and suffering. 

The Master Jesus is the great Hierarchical Ruler of 
the Order of the 1 and consequently must overshadow 
its negative expression, the Order of the 36. That 
which is known as the Christian religion is a manifes- 
tation of this Order on earth, but this Order also em- 
braces all those, in whatever church, society or organ- 
ization, who have recognized the divine Christ-force 
within them and are determinately seeking to balance 
this force in their lives. 

This Order receives its name from the sum of the 
first eight numerals. Eight is the number of evolu- 
tion and therefore, according to mathematical laws, 
evolution alone can admit a candidate to this Order. 
The promulgation of the Wisdom Religion in this 
country is an attempt to build up a strong Guardian 
Wall around the cross, by teaching the vital truths 
back of the symbols of Christianity ; an attempt to cul- 
tivate and to water the tap-root of the Tree of Life 
in humanity. 

Today the Order of the 36 includes all who have 
imbibed anything of the esoteric truths, and are en- 
deavoring to both live and teach them, be they called 
Christians, Theosophists or by any other name. It is 
the preparatory school of the followers of The Christ. 
It also stands for the great Universal Church (not 
necessarily orthodox) and embraces all who are will- 



Degrees and Orders 59 

ing to sanctify themselves and work consciously for 
humanity. The Order of the 36 is the first Order in 
which the candidate consciously decides to enter "The 
Path" which leads to Mastery. All of its members 
have been acquainted with poverty and suffering, if 
not of body and estate, then of mind, through which 
they have gained such a realization of the difference 
between The Christ-force and the man Jesus that they 
can recognize the universal Christ-principle working in 
humanity even when expressing itself through other 
avenues than the teachings of the Master Jesus. This 
realization is the first step up the Mount of Initiation. 

THE ORDER OF THE 28. 

- After candidates have entered the Order of the 36 
and have proved themselves worthy to continue by the 
character of their subsequent lives, at once a new Order 
forms itself and grows naturally out of this Order, 
'just as new lines are added to a crystal. This new 
Order is composed of those Souls who have advanced 
a little beyond their fellows, and would correspond to 
the inner section of any occult organization put forth 
previous to The Order of the J5. 1 It includes those 
in the orthodox churches who are no longer satisfied 
with the dead-letter interpretations of the Scriptures, 
but who have listened to the voice of their own Father- 
in-heaven and are willing to express a greater toler- 
ance and accept broader ideas on spiritual matters. 

This is the Order of the 28. It is the sum of the 
numerals of 7, the mystic feminine number. The end 
and aim of this Order is the unfolding of the teachings 
of Isis — the Mother side of the Godhead — and the 
evolution of the feminine nature or Soul-principle 
through the power of love, in contradistinction to in- 
tellectual attainments. 

1 Jan. 1, 1908, at Philadelphia, Pa. 



60 The Voice of Isis 

Isis represents the power to bring forth in humanity. 
Hence the geometrical figure symbolizing this Order is 
the square or the sacrificial stone on which the lower 
self is sacrificed that the power to bring forth The 
Christ-man may be attained. 

It will be noticed that the Orders thus far considered 
are upon the negative side of the cross. (See Fig. 2.) 
They must therefore be developed and given to human- 
ity by the negative action of natural development. In 
other words, a Soul will grow into these two Orders 
(36 and 28) unconsciously as it advances toward free- 
dom, with very little individualized help; but both 
Orders are advanced collectively by the Masters of The 
Lodge. 

Admission to these Orders depends upon natural 
law — the Law of Growth. A person enters them as 
soon as he becomes fit, either by the preparation af- 
forded by life itself, or after the successful passing of 
well defined initiations upon the inner planes, often 
without the consciousness of the personality. 

POSITIVE ORDERS. 

In accordance with the laws of evolution whenever 
Souls advance beyond the general development of an 
Order, naturally a new Order forms itself, just as a 
bud springs from a branch. In fact two new Orders 
(21 and 15) form themselves simultaneously, both be- 
ing on the positive side of the cross. 

THE ORDER OF THE 21. 

The Order of the 21 is the sum of the numerals of 
6. The 6 is the number of The Christos-principle or 
the generative power of the Great Creative Foroe of 
the Father, manifesting in and through the universe, 



Degrees and Orders 61 

bringing- forth all forms along geometrical lines. The 
6 indicates the harmonizing of Nature, in its highest 
possibilities, through the operation of The Christos or 
the informing principle, the laws of which are taught 
in this Order. As Nature grows geometrically and 
in harmony, so this Order teaches man to evolve in 
harmony by a study of the laws of geometry and 
music as expressed through form, color and number, 
all of which are governed by the Law of Vibration. 
This, therefore, is pre-eminently the Order concerned 
with the laws of Nature and their bearing on the 
evolution of humanity. The persons drawn into this 
intellectual Order are those who have a natural trend 
toward geometry, music, color, or mathematical 
studies. 

THE ORDER OF THE 15. 

Many Souls grow naturally from the Order of the 
28 into the Order of the 21, while those who have 
specially developed their love-nature pass into The 
Order of the 15, it being the Order that reaches into 
the higher octave of love, *'. e., Divine Love, yet it is 
possible to be in both Orders at the same time. 

These two Orders (21 and 15) are put forth sim- 
ultaneously because they are closely interwoven, the 
one (21) representing the Head, or the development 
of the Intellect, and the other (15) representing the 
Heart or the development of Intuition ; the one the 
masculine, the other the feminine force. 

The Order of the 15 is the sum of the numerals of 
5. The 5 is the great mystical number of humanity, 
and was held most sacred by the ancients. On their 
Temples where the numerals were carved in stone the 
number 5 was inlaid with pure gold. The numeral 
5 stands for humanity, hence this Order ordains to 
help humanity to reach the highest state of evolu- 



62 The Voice of I sis 

tion. Its teachings deal with the human every-day 
problems which must be mastered ere man becomes 
more than man. 

This is the Order of Transmutation or Alchemy. 
And while geometry and music are touched upon, more 
attention is given to the transmutation of all the baser 
qualities, including the elements or inner forces of 
all life, into the spiritual gold of Regeneration through 
the power of Divine Love. 

The Order of the 15 has always existed, and traces 
of its various manifestations can be found in ancient 
and medieval history. The Order of the Annuncia- 
tion, held in such high esteem by royalty today, is 
said to have been founded by Count Amadeus of 
Savoy, but long before that, and all through the Mid- 
dle Ages, the number 15 was celebrated with many 
religious ceremonies and observances, the Order of 
the Annunciation being but an adaptation to Romish 
ideas of the ancient Order of the 15. The emblem 
of the Order of the Annunciation is a star on which 
is represented the annunciation surrounded by fifteen 
love-knots. This also symbolizes The Order of the 15, 
for its mission has always been, even in the darkest 
periods of the world's history, to announce the possi- 
bility of bringing into manifestation (birth) The 
Christ-force, which is brought about by the spread of 
tolerance, liberty and brotherly love. The Masons, 
also, retain a degree of this Order, called the Degree 
of the Fifteen, its main objects being devoted to the 
spread of "Toleration and Liberty, against Fanaticism 
and Persecution, political and religious ; and to that 
of Education, Instruction and Enlightenment against 
Error, Barbarism and Ignorance." 1 These instances 
all show that The Order of the 15 has always been 

1 Morals and Dogma, Pike, p. 160-171. 



Degrees and Orders 63 

the Open Door through which the Light of the Great 
Law has reached humanity and shown it how to evolve 
above the light of any one candlestick, be it ever so 
golden or its light ever so brilliant, and how to behold 
the Divine Law which imparts the Light to all, giv- 
ing to each as much as his candle is able to manifest 
in the world. 

The Order of the 15 is the Order of the Holy Grail 
whose lessons prepare for the final Initiation into the 
Order of the Flame. It is an expression of the 
Mother-force, the power of bringing forth. It is not 
what you know or believe, but what you bring forth 
in your life that admits you into full membership in 
this Order. 

The two Orders (21 and 15) have already been 
formed on the earth-plane, and as they are upon the 
positive side of the cross (Fig. 2) the members of 
these Orders must come into direct personal touch 
with the workers of the Great White Lodge. This 
has already been done and a personal contact has 
been established. Like all other Orders, however, 
membership does not depend upon recognition by any 
embodied teacher or teachers, but must be a conscious 
step taken voluntarily by each Soul alone. 

Having taken this step alone, apparently in the 
darkness, the pupil will be brought to the initiation 
which his demand will surely bring about. He will 
meet this initiation either unconsciously through nat- 
ural worldly events (events, however, which he will 
have no difficulty in connecting with this great step), 
or consciously in the higher astral. The experiences 
met with at this period will not consist of a few great 
Soul-stirring events, which when once passed entitle 
him to admission, but will consist of events which will 
bring to him a repetition of experiences which will 



64 The Voice of Isis 

force him to face himself and bring to his conscious- 
ness every secret and open fault; events which will 
force him to gaze into the eyes of the self that he has 
created out of the personality which his Real Self (or 
Ego) has created to train and function through; the 
self built up out of the thought-forms he has created. 
It therefore contains the essence of the desires, am- 
bitions, passions and aspirations of his personality. It 
is the Dweller on the Threshold that each must meet, 
recognize as his own creation, and conquer. 

There can be no dodging the issue or turning back 
from these events, for it is a mathematical law that 
he cannot pass on until he has acquired strength to 
conquer these faults, one by one, as they are presented 
to him. If he refuses, or is unable to conquer, his 
Soul must wait and work in the lower Orders until it 
grows stronger, and until another cyclic opportunity 
for advance is afforded. 

It is not a matter of pledges or words. He can 
never obtain membership in this Order until he is 
able to live the earlier teachings and demonstrate to 
the tvorld by his life that he has at least passed the 
earlier tests, and has made some successful attempt 
to "Let your light shine before men," and that he has 
been "born again," and has been marked with the 
"New Name" given by his Father. 

HIGHER ORDERS. 

The Order of the 10 has not yet been openly estab- 
lished upon the earth-plane, although its teachings have 
been given esoterically for many centuries. It was 
from a Master guiding this esoteric Order that the 
teachings of the Wisdom Religion were first given out 
to the Western world. 

The Order of the 10 is the Order in which the 
teachings of The Christ receive their completion upon 



Degrees and Orders 65 

the earth-plane. It is necessarily composed only of 
those who can receive direct teachings from the Mas- 
ters of Wisdom. These are the disciples who "sit at 
the feet of the Master." 

The Order of the 6 is the sum of the numerals of 
3 and will be brought to humanity by the coming 
Avatar. 

The Order of the 3 and the 1. These perfected 
Orders are beyond the comprehension of man in 
his present state of spiritual development, the Order of 
the 1 overlapping a new (Third) Great Degree, the 
Divine. 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE WISDOM RELIGION. 

"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get 
wisdom; and with all thy getting get understand- 
ing. . . . She shall give to thine head an orna- 
ment of grace : a crown of glory shall she deliver 
to thee." 

Proverbs IV, 7-9 

The Wisdom Religion is the one original religion 
given to all mankind. The Greeks called it Theophania 1 
or "the science of the manifestation or appearance of 
the gods to men." It is the heritage of the human race 
and no one nation or people can claim it as theirs to 
the exclusion of others. All so-called religions — 
which are racial and limited — are but the various hu- 
man interpretations of the one Wisdom Religion by 
various peoples, each adapting it, according to their 
racial type of thought, to their particular point of 
view, and limiting and overlaying it with their hu- 
man misconceptions. It is the one or first and Supreme 
Wisdom. Pythagoras termed it, "The Gnosis or 
Knowledge of things that are." This seems to be the 
best definition, for it makes the great distinction -be- 
tween the teachings of many modern so-called re- 
ligions — which deal almost entirely with theories about 
things which even the propounders thereof do not pre- 
tend to know, but which they expect their followers to 
accept because these theories have been accepted by 
their denomination for ages — and the One Religion 
which was taught to man only by those who absolutely 
knew. 

1 Tkeos, gods; phaenomai, appear. 



The Wisdom Religion 67 

Many centuries before the origin of the Christian 
religion, there existed in the ancient land of Atlantis, 
and later in Asia, a Wisdom Religion which spread 
over the then known world. Fragments of this re- 
ligion, carved upon temples, pillars and tablets by the 
ancient Babylonians, Egyptians, Chinese and Hindus, 
also by the Persians and Mesopotamians, are still de- 
cipherable. In the beginning this one Wisdom Re- 
ligion was taught by the Divine Instructors, the Sons 
of God mentioned in Genesis, and later by the Sages 
of India, the Magians of Babylonia and Persia, the 
Prophets of Israel, the Hierophants of Egypt and 
Arabia, the Seers and Philosophers of Greece, and 
by the Master Jesus and the initiated disciples of the 
early Christian Church, all of whom acquired this 
wisdom and knowledge through the regular channels, 
i. e., through the mastery of the flesh and conscious 
communion and union with the Divine. Nor has it 
ever ceased to be taught by advanced Souls who gained 
their knowledge of this divine wisdom in the same 
way. Never, even during the darkest ages, has the 
world lacked the testimony of some Great Soul who 
attained to this divine knowledge in the one and only 
way, nor will the time ever come when this, testimony 
is lacking. But "as usual, that which is and was from 
its beginning divine, pure and spiritual in its earliest 
unity, became — by reason of its differentiation through 
the distorted prism of man's conceptions — human and 
impure, as reflecting man's own sinful nature." x One 
application of the law "So the last shall be first, and 
the first last," is that the one Wisdom Religion shall 
prevail upon the earth during the last Races of human- 
ity, as it did during the first. The great difference 
is that in the beginning humanity was like a child 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. 1, p. 631. 



68 The Voice of Isis 

learning the great truths from the Gods direct, much 
as a child learns to lisp its prayers at its mother's knee. 
Later, when humanity grew up and entered the 
world's arena, it had to put into practice the lessons 
inculcated in its childhood. And at the last, when hu- 
manity has reached the stage of manhood, we have the 
promise that the Race shall become once more pure 
and innocent, not, however, with the purity and inno- 
cence of ignorance, but of Wisdom. In other words, 
it will again practice the precepts of the Wisdom Re- 
ligion given by .the Father in the beginning, so that 
the condition at the last shall be as it was at the first, 
completing the old and becoming the first step of a new 
and grander dispensation as yet undrempt of by man. 

"There was in every ancient country having claims 
to civilization, an Esoteric Doctrine, a system which 
was designated wisdom, and those who were devoted 
to its prosecution were first denominated sages, or 
wise men." x 

The Wisdom Religion has always been divided into 
two parts ; that which — while essentially divine, per- 
tained, nevertheless, to matters comprehensible even 
to the unenlightened and necessary for their progress 
and daily life — was ~alled the Exoteric or Outer Doc- 
trine, and that which was given only to initiated disci- 
ples, called the Esoteric or Inner Doctrine. The Wisdom 
Religion deals with "things that are," and hence is not 
a religion of ritual and dogma, although it gives to 
them their soul. It takes but little thought to realize 
that all "things that are" must have deep, under- 
lying causes which produce the effects. These 
causes, naturally, can be known and understood 
only by the few. In every science, while much 
can be given to the world at large, still the 

1 Quoted by The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. Ill, p. 55. 



The Wisdom Religion 69 

deep, mysterious workings of the science — be that 
science what it may — can be discovered only by 
one who has made it a life study, devoting all his time, 
thought and enthusiasm to its inner and less apparent 
causes. Unless there were some who could and did 
thus study, no true idea of that science could be given 
to the world. Every experiment must be proved in the 
laboratory ere it can be given to the world — the sci- 
entist must know. If the many confusing technicali- 
ties were laid before the general, untrained public, they 
would tend not only to confuse, but also to discourage, 
and perhaps work great harm. For instance, a poi- 
sonous drug, which in the hands' of a trained physician 
may be wisely experimented with and its greatest po- 
tencies and powers to save life discovered — as well as 
its dangers — if given to the general public might prove 
disastrous. 

Thus it is with the Wisdom Religion. It can reveal 
its inner truths only to those few who have devoted 
many lives to its study and who have thereby evolved 
to a point where it can be taught them direct from 
God, for it would be unwise and dangerous to give 
many of its mysteries to untrained disciples, be they 
ever so earnest and sincere. Hence the Esoteric or 
Inner has always gone hand in hand with the Exoteric 
Doctrine. The Esoteric when mentioned outwardly 
at all, is set forth in parables and symbols so that only 
those whose hearts are illumined by the light of The 
Christos can understand the deeper meanings, yet such 
parables always contain an obvious moral precept which 
is helpful to all who receive it. 

Many ask, if the Wisdom Religion is so true and of 
such benefit to humanity, and is possessed in its full- 
ness by the Masters of Wisdom, why is it hedged about 
by so many apparently unsurmountable difficulties? 



70 The Voice of his 

and why have the Masters permitted so much misun- 
derstanding and error to be given to the world as 
truth? and many similar questions. We read, "Yet 
there must have been some very good reason for it, 
since from the very dawn of History such has been the 
policy of every Hierophant and 'Master.' . . . From 
the very day when the first mystic, taught by the first 
Instructor of the 'Divine Dynasties' of the early races, 
was taught the means of communication between this 
world and the worlds of the invisible host, between 
the sphere of matter and that of pure spirit, he con- 
cluded that to abandon this mysterious science to the 
desecration, willing or unwilling, of the profane rabble 
— was to lose it. An abuse of it might lead mankind 
to speedy destruction ; it was like surrounding a group 
of children with explosive substances, and furnishing 
them with matches. The first Divine Instructor initi- 
ated but a select few, and these kept silence with the 
multitudes." x That is, only those were initiated who, 
of their own free-will and desire had Shown a deter- 
mination to penetrate into the hidden mysteries, and 
a capacity to use the knowledge gained for the good of 
all, under the direction of their Instructors. When, 
however, seekers whose motives are pure and selfless 
are determined to penetrate into the Inner Mysteries 
and earnestly ask for guidance, the way to the desired 
knowledge always opens. For while it is dangerous to 
reveal the Inner Mysteries to those whose hearts are 
unprepared, it is equally dangerous to withhold them 
from those whose hearts are ready. 

There must be absolute fearlessness, for "the path- 
way to the Gods" leads through the horrors of the 
lower astral world, whose debasing influences and 
obsessing entities will and must wreck their will upon 



1 The Secret Doctrine, Vol. III. p. 52. 



The Wisdom Religion 71 

the disciple who opens his doors to that world unless 
he has grown strong and fearless through a special 
training which has brought about an influx of suf- 
ficient divine Power and Wisdom to enable him under- 
standing^ to cope with such forces instead of being 
used by them. The allegory of Daniel cast into the 
lion's den, also the three prophets in the fiery furnace, 
are illustrations of this point. Each walked unharmed 
amidst his fearful surroundings because The Christ- 
force — "the Angel of the Lord" — protected him. 

No matter how eagerly disciples desire these secrets 
it was, and still is, the duty of every Teacher of the 
Mysteries to withhold all esoteric instruction from 
them until, by the character of their lives, they have 
proved that they are ready to be entrusted with it. 
It is not enough for them to intend to do their best; 
it is absolutely necessary that they acquire Wisdom 
to cope, like Daniel, with all conditions and forces 
of life. Such Wisdom can only be acquired after 
many lives of experience and severe testing. Hence 
no mortal can tell when he or any other is ready for 
initiation into the Mysteries. Only those Divine 
Instructors who have watched him life after life, and 
have noted how he has borne himself in the various 
vicissitudes of mortal experience, can judge as to his 
attaining Mastery in a particular incarnation. Hence 
the occult axiom, which is literally true and has never 
failed, "When the pupil is ready the Teacher appears." 
The Teacher here referred to is usually not a super- 
human Being, but is that person, teaching or thing 
which will give the seeker the knowledge needed 
for his next step. And only when no human being 
or accessible teaching can fulfill that need does a 
more than human Teacher appear. The pupil is not 
the judge of his readiness for this step, for he is not 



72 The Voice of Isis 

ready until he has gained the ability to recognize his 
Teacher on the inner planes. Until that time it is 
his duty to take the steps, one by one, as life presents 
them, until a next step brings him into the presence 
of his Teacher. To come close to the Masters strive 
to do the works of the Masters, for the more you 
strive to do those works the closer you come. An 
apprentice works apart from the Master-workman 
while learning the preliminaries, but when he be- 
gins to do master-work he works under the direct 
supervision of the Master-workman and becomes his 
helper. 

Solomon, referring to this Esoteric Doctrine says, 
"with all thy getting, get understanding," and David 
emphasizes this point when he says, "The fear of the 
Lord (or the Law) is the beginning of Wisdom." 
For until we gain a wholesome fear or, to speak more 
correctly — awe, of the Great Law which the Wisdom 
Religion teaches, the disciple is not ready even to set 
out consciously on the Path of Attainment. The first 
conscious step upon the Path is a comprehension of 
the sacredness and the desirability of the spiritual 
Wisdom which is spoken of in the Bible as the Pearl 
of Great Price, for the attainment of which the dis- 
ciple gladly sells all that he — the personal self — has. 
When he has thus gladly sacrificed his all for it he will 
realize that it is not something to be talked about idly 
or displayed before men, but something to be sought 
for in the inner sanctuary of the heart. 

The disciple must be willing to be proved worthy 
ere he can hope to receive. Solomon says, "When 
Wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is 
pleasant unto thy soul ; discretion shall preserve thee, 
understanding shall keep thee." Every candidate for 
initiation must feel within himself the Great Self, the 
Mighty Lord and Protector. The I Am or Ego Siium 



The Wisdom Religion 73 

shows His full power to each one who can recognize 
the Still Small Voice, and this recognition can only 
come through the cultivation of the spirit of Love. 

We attain to a knowledge of this Mighty Lord, our 
Father-in-heaven, when we do the works of our Father. 
First and foremost of these works are the manifesting 
in our lives of Divine Love and Compassion. He who 
says he has realized the Divine within himself, yet only 
as power for his own upliftment and who uses it only 
for his own advancement, has never even approached 
that realization. Such receive the condemnation of 
those who prophesied and did many wondrous works in 
His name: "I know you not whence ye are; depart 
from me, all ye workers of iniquity." x The first action 
of the Divine in the heart is to awaken Love and 
Compassion for the Race. God is Love, and the dis- 
ciple cannot draw near to or have a realization of 
God without an awakening of that divine Love and 
Compassion which is not limited to individuals, but 
which is poured out for all the world — for God so loves 
the world that He continually gives His only begotten 
Son— the emanation from Himself, Love — that whoso- 
ever believeth on this Son shall have eternal life. 

He who feels another's sorrow, who forgets self for 
others, has realized, in a measure at least, the Divine. 
And while the works of the Father are what the world 
would call magic, still the greatest miracle of all is 
the miracle of loving. How few there be who really 
and truly love their fellow man ! How few there be 
who forget themselves, their own pleasures, their own 
so-called rights, their own happiness for another, for 
the meanest of God's "little ones," for perhaps even a 
dumb brute. He who feels another's sorrow has 
touched somewhere upon the Divine within. There- 
's"*. Luke, XIII. 27. 



74 The Voice of Isis 

fore when you would attain to this realization, empty 
out the personal and let the Divine Father overshadow 
you and shelter and feed you with the mystic Bread 
of which when ye eat thereof ye shall hunger no more, 
neither thirst. 

The Wisdom Religion teaches the means of accom- 
plishing this union of the human with the Divine ; for 
there is no possibility of attaining Mastery or of en- 
tering the kingdom of heaven unless the human is in- 
dissolubly linked to the God within. It is the firm be- 
lief in the possibilities of such union that helps one to 
attain it. This is the only possible Path of Attainment. 
The more this truth grows upon the candidate the 
greater the power of the Immortal God to manifest 
through him. And as the manifestation of the God 
within grows and waxes strong the Man of Sin, or 
the mere animal man, dies or is literally consumed in 
the divine ardor. As St. Paul says : "The first man is 
of the earth, earthy : the second man is the Lord from 
heaven .... and as we have borne the image of the 
earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." l 
The Wisdom Religion not only teaches this, but the 
Esoteric Doctrine signifies much more, for it teaches 
the possibility of the recognition by initiated mortals, 
not only of the actual presence on earth of a God or 
Gods, but the actual blending of the Higher Self, the 
personal God, with man, His representative on earth. 
But to accomplish this, the candidate must feed his 
spiritual body on this divine realization just as the 
physical body is fed with mortal food ; for the bread 
of God is that which cometh down from heaven and 
giveth life unto the world. 

1 I Corinthians, XV. 47-50. 



CHAPTER V. 

CONCERNING THE DOCTRINE OF HELL FIRE. 

"And the devil that deceived them was cast into 
the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast 
and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented 
day and night forever and ever." — Revelation, 
XX. 10. 

The Christian Bible, like all great scriptures, is an 
inspired setting forth of the one Divine Wisdom in 
symbolic language. It deals with principles, not things. 
It describes qualities, forces and spiritual events, not 
historical men, places or physical events. It is "A rep- 
ertory of invented personages in its older Jewish por- 
tions, and of dark sayings and parables in its later 
additions, and thus quite misleading to anyone igno- 
rant of its Esotericism." 1 It is less understood than 
more ancient scriptures, because all so-called study of 
it has proceeded upon the hypothesis that it is intended 
to present historical facts. In reality, no great scrip- 
ture is historically true, nor is it supposed to be by 
those who, having been initiated into its mysteries, 2 un- 
derstand something of their inner meaning. It is time 
this fact is more widely known. 

All scriptures and myths are collections of allegories 
and parables, grouped and arranged to illustrate sym- 
bolically some feature of the growth of the Soul. 
Hence, while not historically true, as modern re- 
search has abundantly shown, they are universally true, 
because they illustrate phases of experience through 
which every Soul passes during its evolution toward 
conscious union with the Divine. As far back as the 
early Gnostic sect of the Johannites — the forerunners 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. Ill, p. 81. 
*See Matthew XIII. n. 



76 The Voice of Isis 

of the Crusaders — who claimed to be the only true 
initiates into the secret mysteries of Jesus and who 
claimed direct apostolic descent from St. John, it was 
taught that the stories as narrated in the Gospels were 
but allegories. Whenever possible, familiar historical 
incidents, names and places are used to illustrate the 
points more clearly, and also to inculcate a moral les- 
son for "them that are without," i. e., not initiated, 1 
who are able to grasp only surface truths. Since 
scriptural stories and events do not agree with the 
proven facts of history (except incidentally, here and 
there), the Bible has either been accepted in a literal 
sense and slavishly followed, even against all common 
sense and justice, or it has been mutilated and only 
such parts as can, seemingly, be "proved" accepted, 
and the rest rejected or discredited. Bloody wars have 
been waged in efforts to harmonize its discrepancies, 
and sanction found in it for everything from debauch- 
ery to the buying and selling of brothers and sisters in 
slavery. 

In studying the seemingly preposterous myths and 
legends of gods and goddesses found in more ancient 
scriptures, we have no difficulty in understanding that 
they are not supposed to have an accurate histor- 
ical basis, even though referring to historical or as- 
tronomical events. We do not attempt to pin them 
down to actual facts, but seek for the hidden meaning 
pertaining to the spiritual development of mankind 
which we know they must contain. The Bible, instead 
of dealing with gods and goddesses, deals- in exactly 
the same way with personages and places, some of 
which are taken from history, not because their use 
in this way pretends to be history, but because the his- 

1 "And he said unto them, unto you it is given to know the 
mystery of the kingdom of God : but unto them that are without, all 
these things are done in parables." — Mark IV. II. 



Concerning the Doctrine of Hell Fire 77 

torical facts readily lend themselves to the illustration 
of the lesson intended. Other names and places used 
are just as fictitious as those used in the ancient myths ; 
but they all have their inner, occult significance — the 
numerical value' of the very words themselves have a 
definite meaning — and are purposely selected to indi- 
cate steps in the Path of At-one-ment up which each 
Soul must journey. 

The Old Testament, written for the purpose of teach- 
ing the Divine Truths to the Hebrews draws its sym- 
bology largely from Hebrew or Chaldean history, and 
expresses its symbols in terms of Hebrew thought. 
But like the scriptures given to other nations, while 
the symbols used are expressed in a particular race- 
thought, nevertheless the true meaning or the hid- 
den lesson applies to all mankind. The New Testament 
is the symbolic history of The Christ-force or prin- 
ciple 1 in each heart — the journey of the awakened Soul 
from the time of the birth of The Christ in the heart 
to the crucifixion on the cross 2 of material desires, the 
final victory of the spiritual over the physical and the 
resurrection and immortality of the flesh — all of which 
must be experienced in some incarnation by every re- 
deemed Soul. 

It makes very little difference, as far as the truth 

\ of the teachings is concerned, whether or not a man 

; by the name of Jesus ever lived. It is the teaching 

' that counts. The multitude see the beautiful story, 

which is filled with living truth, and those who are 

ready sense the inner meaning, thus each one gets 

exactly what he is ready to receive. As a matter of 

history, there was a Great Master by the name of 

Jesus — the greatest Avatar yet come to earth — who did 

1 See St. Matthew XXII. 41-4. 

* See lesson on "The Meaning of the Cross." 



78 The Voice of Isis 

pass through the experiences symbolized in the Bible 
during the pilgrimage of His Soul toward Mastery. 
The stories are woven about this great Initiate and 
historic events and places are adapted to carry out the 
symbology. And His teachings remain today the most 
sublime ever given to man. The Christian Bible is the 
deepest treatise on esoteric or Divine Wisdom ever 
given to man; for it contains all the accumulated wis- 
dom of past ages together with a prophecy of times to 
come. A passage characteristic of the esoteric mean- 
ing of the Bible is found in Revelation XI, 3-8 : "And 
I will give power unto my two witnesses. . . . And 
when they have finished their testimony, the beast that 
ascended out of the bottomless pit shall make war 
against them, and shall overcome them and kill them. 
And their dead bodies shall lie in the streets of the 
great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, 
where also our Lord was crucified." x This text alone 
should convince the most skeptical that only a symbolic 
meaning is intended. It scarcely needs to be pointed 
out that "our Lord" was crucified neither in Sodom 
nor yet in Egypt, but that both names were accepted 
symbols for that state of darkness in which the un- 
redeemed Soul wanders, and in which The Christ 
(Higher Self) is daily crucified. Our Lord, or the 
Great Law of Divine Love was and is today crucified 
both in Sodom and Egypt, or in the states of impurity 
and darkness symbolized by those names. 

There is no doctrine that has caused so much con- 
troversy as the doctrine of hell-fire. As the Race out- 
grows the repugnant idea of an everlasting physical 
punishment, there is a tendency to sweep this whole 
teaching into limbo as being a bogie used to scare man- 
kind in its childhood, but not to be dignified by seri- 

1 See explanation in the lesson on "The False Prophet," p. 2. 



Concerning the Doctrine of Hell Fire 79 

ous consideration in its mature years — a something 
that pertained to the age of superstition and the child- 
hood of the Race. But back of the ignorant and repel- 
lant misconception of this doctrine there is a pertinent 
and deeply occult significance; for such a doctrine 
would not be given the prominent place it occupies un- 
less it contained the germ of a vital truth necessary for 
the growth of the Soul. When hell is mentioned in 
the Bible it means one of three things, viz. : occasionally 
the suffering of earthly experience, but usually the un- 
seen state, Sheol, the lower sub-planes of the astral, a 
state of consciousness or Hades. More correctly it re- 
fers to the Eighth Sphere, the place of transmutation 
where evil is transmuted into good. When hell-fire is 
mentioned it refers to the purifying fires of Karma. 
Hence, to say that the gates of hell shall not prevail 
against you means, firstly, that if your intuition is de- 
veloped so that you can be guided by The Christ-con- 
sciousness neither the state of consciousness designated 
as hell nor the sufferings of earthly conditions nor the 
denizens of the lower astral can deceive or prevail 
against you ; secondly, that by the creative power of 
The Christ within you create within yourself a Divine 
World so that there is nothing of you to be cast into 
the crucible of transmutation and be disintegrated, but 
that all shall be immortalized and rise with the Risen 
Lord, that where He is there ye may be also; thirdly, 
that your Intuition being centered in The Christ "no 
evil thing can come nigh thy dwelling," no falsehood 
can lead you astray, no astral entity can deceive you 
and no false teaching appeal to you. All of which 
things are gates of hell which cannot prevail against 
the Risen Christ-consciousness. 

The devil, as explained in the lesson on The False 
Prophet, is the accumulated evil thought-force of the 



80 The Voice of Isis 

world seeking expression in humanity and deceiving 
all men. The inner meaning of the following passage : 
"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your 
father ye will do. . . . When he speaketh a lie, he 
speaketh of his own : for he is a liar, and the father of 
it," l is that men are children of the devil in that they 
are born under the great delusion, the one great, para- 
mount lie, that the physical body, together with 
material existence, is the great reality. Instead realize 
that the personality 2 is but a garment or mask assumed 
by the Real Self, and that material existence is but 
the stage upon which but a single scene in the drama 
of the Soul's life is enacted. Nothing is true that is 
not from eternity to eternity, hence the evil (the devil) 
which blinds the eyes of the personality and throws its 
illusive glamour over all mankind is the creator or 
father of all lies. * This great lie, together with every- 
thing that tends to strengthen it and make it seem de- 
sirable, is like a mill-stone around the neck of every- 
one born into earth life. In occult parlance it is the 
world's Karma which all must bear. In this sense hu- 
manity is a child of the devil or, as Job expresses it, 
"man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward." 
But in this very lament we see the remedy; for it is 
only by the hammering on the anvil of life, and the 
burning of the karmic fires, that the Divine Sparks 
are released to fly upward to unity in the Godhead. 
The "lake which burneth with fire and brimstone," 
into which the False Prophet and the Beast are cast, 
is one of the seven manifestations of the Great Law 
(acting in its aspect of Karma) 3 which permits noth- 
ing to endure that is false, that cannot withstand the vi- 
brations of Divine Truth. Its fires are the fires of pu- 

*St. John VIII, 44. 

* Per, through; sonar t, to sound; personality, a mask to speak 

through. 
•See Chapter VIII. 



Concerning the Doctrine of Hell Fire 81 

rification and transmutation that consume all that is 
impure or false ; all that maketh a lie. And that which 
maketh a lie is not limited to the utterance of a false- 
hood, but includes everything that tends to create a 
false impression ; everything that represents itself to 
be that which it is not. Fire is the highest earthly ele- 
ment, and its action transforms or raises all substances 
to a higher condition. While the substances burned 
cease to exist on the physical-plane they still exist in a 
higher state, leaving behind only that which belongs 
to earth in the form of ashes. 

Brimstone or sulphur is used in daily life for purify- 
ing, bleaching and subliming. Salt purifies and pre- 
serves, but brimstone sublimes and raises to a higher 
condition. It represents the earth-plane, also that stage 
in which the novice is cast into the flame to be sub- 
limed; where he has the dross of earth consumed that 
his spiritual pneuma may be released and rise to a 
higher manifestation. The fires are the blazing fires 
of Karma that the personality itself has lit, and in 
which it must stand until all is transmuted into gold. 
Brimstone is the means by which the other elements 
cast into the burning are prepared for their next step 
in evolution. But in accomplishing this the brimstone 
must sacrifice its bodily form and be sublimed. This 
action is the foundation for, and the real meaning 
of the symbol of fire and brimstone used in our text. 
And like all such symbols it survives because it con- 
tains a germ of truth. The lake, of course, is not a 
physical lake of fire and brimstone any more than the 
so-called hell is a physical place; but it is an actual 
condition. It represents the earth-plane, also that stage 
must pass. The earth itself is passing through this 
same burning and purification that its substance may 
be prepared for the future and higher conditions which 



82 The Voice of Isis 

will prevail during the coming new Race. The gases 
generated by the subliming action of the sulphur are 
gathering in certain areas preparatory to the great ex- 
plosions of the future, and the humanity that is to sur- 
vive those great cataclysms must have passed through 
the burning and purifying flames of Karmic Law that 
they may be enabled to breathe the rarified atmosphere 
resulting from the changed physical conditions which 
will then exist. 

Hell is separation from God. The Psalmist cries, 
"For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell ; neither wilt 
thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." * The 
physical body is in hell and does see corruption ; for 
hell is made up of the fermenting, corroding and cor- 
rupting influences which act upon the physical and 
mental bodies from birth until final dissolution. In 
the case of the mental body these influences may last 
through many incarnations, until all that is false in 
habits, ideas, beliefs and understandings is completely 
consumed and the mind illumined by spiritual under- 
standing. 

All must willingly stand in this burning, but they 
must also perform the much harder task of standing 
aside and permitting others, even their own loved ones 
to be sublimed ; to stand in the burning and suffer 
through the conditions which Karma presents to 
them. How many would gladly attempt to bear the 
hardships and sufferings of their loved ones rather than 
stand aside and permit them to fulfill their karmic des- 
tiny in exact justice! But their loved ones cannot be 
purified and pass on to higher things if their burdens 
are borne for them and they are not allowed to meet 
their tests and stand in the fiery furnace which they 
in ages past have lighted, for only when they can 

1 Psalms, XVI. 10. 



Concerning the Doctrine of Hell Fire 83 

enter this fiery furnace and find the Lord Christ walk- 
ing with them — by this recognition the fires lose their 
power to harm — are they ready to pass on. If sen- 
timental reasons are permitted to interfere with 
the loved ones' performance of duty, the time of the 
purification is pushed back and more fuel is accumu- 
lated for the burning. Stand aside then, and while 
giving all love, sympathy and encouragement, allow 
all to meet their tests and burnings that they may be 
purified and advance to higher things. It is into this 
hell that The Christ-principle descends after the cruci- 
fixion, and it is into this hell that each Soul must 
descend that all that belongs to the lower self (person- 
ality) may be consumed, leaving only the purified 
Spirit to rise to the heights beyond. 

This is the meaning of the doctrine of hell-fire ; and 
it manifests on the four lower planes. The Soul, how- 
ever, as the Psalmist says, will not be left in hell, but 
will garner from it the experience necessary to clothe 
itself in immortality. Hell endures forever and ever, 
for there is no end to eternity or evolution and there 
will always be something to burn and be purified and 
transmuted. This does not mean that any Soul will 
stand in hell forever, but that each Soul must pass 
through it. No one remains in it one moment longer 
than is required to transmute the base metal of per- 
sonality into the pure gold of spiritual attainment. For 
Karma is not a punishment or even an inevitable law 
of suffering which we must endure to the end; but 
rather in the course of evolution our Higher Self 
finds that we lack certain Soul-qualities, hence chooses 
to incarnate in certain families and under certain con- 
ditions which will bring out the Soul-quality which is 
lacking. Everything must pass through the burning 
that it may be transmuted into love to lay at the 



84 The Voice of Isis 

Master's feet, while selfishness and all earthly dross 
is left behind like ashes. 

Every sincere seeker should gladly stand in the 
flames of the karmic hell, for only the faults, only 
that which is impure or false can burn. All the false 
teachings, false doctrines, false love, false living; all 
misunderstandings and misconceptions, being but 
transitory, will be consumed, but nothing that is real, 
that is immortal can burn ; the true will emerge as 
pure gold. In that day we will know as we are 
known; for the coverings of falsehood and pretense 
will have disappeared in the burning. 

Therefore, let this realization of the fire that burn- 
etii and the worm that dieth not, remain with you as 
the greatest comfort to your Soul. Realize that all you 
have to do is to wait and trust and pray that everything 
that holds you back from your true spiritual advance 
may be quickly consumed that the burning may come 
to an end. That which burns is mortal and transitory 
and has no part nor lot in your real life. Realize that 
the burning cannot last one moment longer than you 
give fuel to the flames. As soon as the dross is burned 
away the dawning of the resurrection morn will come. 
As soon as you cease to deceive, cease to lie, cease to 
be false, you cease to furnish fuel to the flames, hence 
the burning will last only until that which has been 
accumulated is consumed. 

Stand still, then, in the burning that you may be 
purified. Weave for yourselves immortal garments 
of Purity and Truth. Lay up for yourselves treasures 
in immortal habitations, "where neither moth nor rust 
doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through 
nor steal." And when the fires of hell have become the 
crown of glory that shall illumine the saints, then shall 
they walk the streets of the New Jerusalem (the puri- 



Concerning the Doctrine of Hell Fire 



85 



fied earth) in white raiment. "And there shall be no 
night there; and they need no candle, neither light of 
the sun ; for the Lord God giveth them light ; and they 
shall reign for ever and ever." * For these are they 
that h ave come out of great tribulation. 

1 Revelation, XXII. 5. 






CHAPTER VI. 

THE ELEVENTH COMMANDMENT. 

"But we beseech you, brethren, . . . that 
ye study to be quiet, and to do your own busi- 
ness." / Thessalonians, IV-11. 

"Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's 
business?" St. Luke, 11-49. 

"Beware of fear that spreadeth, like the black 
and soundless wings of midnight bat, between 
the moonlight of thy Soul and thy great goal that 
loometh in the distance far away." The Voice 
of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment III, 

In the life of every earnest seeker after Truth, after 
the first enthusiasm of the awakening to his spiritual 
possibilities and the wonder of his newly found joy, 
there comes a period of depression in which every- 
thing seems to fail him, and a shadow of discourage- 
ment, almost lack of faith, seems to spread over him. 
In his mind questionings arise at first fleeting, then 
growing more persistent. "After all, is this great 
change that has come into my life worth the effort I 
have made to give up old ideals and conditions and 
remodel my life? Are these new ideas practical or are 
they mere ephemeral sophistries which fail me in my 
hour of need? And the teachers to whom I have lis- 
tened, are they not human beings, full of frailties like 
myself, with no higher wisdom for my guidance; with 
nothing to give me that I have not already of myself ?" 
A great fear possesses him, lest conditions beat him 
back and compel him to resume the old treadmill of 
his former life, without hope and without being able 
to contact the spiritual power that sustained him at 
first. All his beautiful soul experiences, looked at 



The Eleventh Commandment 87 

from this Slough of Despond, now seem to have been 
but fantastic imaginings, and the cry goes forth : What 
is the use of all this struggling? At this point, unless 
some understanding of the Law is grasped, the seeker 
is apt to slip back, apt to repudiate all the good resolu- 
tions and vows he has made to his Higher Self and, 
like the man from out whom the unclean spirit was 
cast, he then takes unto himself seven other unclean 
spirits of worry, doubt, fear and discouragement, and 
his last state is worse than the first. If, however, it is 
pointed out to him at this time that this depression is 
but a natural phenomenon, through some phase of 
which most seekers pass and which is just as natural 
as a night of darkness after a day of sunshine, he will 
be able to take advantage of this night period of the 
Soul to strengthen his courage and faith. 

If he turns to the Bible for comfort he will find it 
in the twenty-third Psalm. "Yea, though I walk 
through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear 
no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff 
they comfort me." The period of depression is indeed 
"the valley of the shadow of death," i. e., the shadow 
of the death of his high ideals ; a valley in that it is 
a depression between two heights. And just as surely 
as he has descended from one height into this valley, 
so must he, if he persevere, climb the height beyond. 
But if he insists on walking up and down the valley, 
for lack of courage to essay the height ahead, the 
shadow will descend and enwrap him. "Beware, Dis- 
ciple, of that lethal shade. No light that shines from 
Spirit can dispel the darkness of the nether Soul, un- 
less all selfish thought has fled therefrom. . . . It is 
the shadow of thyself outside the PATH, cast on 
the darkness of thy sins." 1 The rod and staff are 

1 The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment III. 



88 The Voice of his 

given to every disciple, not only to lean upon, but also 
as an alpen-stock with which to climb the Mountains 
of Attainment. 

There is an old injunction often used in a spirit of 
impatience and anger or flippantly alluded to as the 
11th commandment, yet which contains a deep occult 
significance, i. e., "Mind your own business." The 
ten commandments given to Moses seem to cover all 
phases of mortal life so that he who keeps that deca- 
log does his whole duty to God and man, yet while the 
10 and the decimal system is accepted as perfection in 
worldly affairs; the duodecimal (12) is a system often 
used in the computation of occult periods. Hence, the 
seeker who is striving to live above mere worldly 
affairs, who is striving to shape his life in accord 
with the deeper mysteries of existence, has need 
of two more commandments to make up his duo- 
decalog. Whereas, the ten commandments were 
delivered on Mt. Sinai, amidst thunderings and 
lightnings, the eleventh and twelfth command- 
ments are given by the Still Small Voice that 
speaks in the Silence. The eleventh commandment 
may sound irreverent, but in its occult significance it is 
far from being so, for if obeyed it covers the period of 
depression referred to above. The significance of the 
twelfth commandment can only be grasped when the 
eleventh has become a part of your life. 

Each one of you who chooses, after due deliberation 
and meditation, to set for yourself a divine standard 
of life, has entered upon a new business, one which 
vitally concerns yourself. And at the very outset of 
this new business you must meet yourself face to face, 
take account of stock and find out what your real 
business is. To mind your own business does not 
mean merely negatively to refrain from interfering 



The Eleventh Commandment 89 

with the business of others, although that is included. 
The deeper meaning is to find out what your own 
business is, then actively to be about it. This applies 
particularly to you who have determined to live the 
higher life, you who have passed through the ecstasy 
of the awakening and are now passing through the 
natural reaction, the Slough of Despond, "the valley 
of the shadow of death." / The reason for the depres- 
sion is that the moment you say to your Higher Self 
that you will henceforth live in accord with the will of 
that Self working through you, you find yourself 
face to face with your old personality. This personal- 
ity is composite, the aggregate of the factors and 
forces of the age in which you live. That is, it is 
made up of elements from all the lower kingdoms — 
mineral, vegetable, animal — as well as the mental traits 
and tendencies that are the Karma, not only of the 
Soul, but also of the age, the race, the nation, the 
community and the family in which you live, all of 
which are literally built into your physical, astral, de- 
sire and mental bodies, a microcosm in very truth. Be- 
cause this personality and its traits are not altogether 
your own, but are taken from the various kingdoms 
and other sources, the instant you determine to break 
away from the bonds of the flesh and express your 
Real Self, you take all these varied factors out of 
their customary vibration and impose upon them the 
will of the higher Being, your True Self. The new 
key-note is resisted by all the elements in the per- 
sonality as well as in the environment, and the com- 
bined opposition of all is focused upon you. There 
is aroused within you every sleeping tendency ; tenden- 
cies which heretofore you did not recognize nor even 
suspect. Many of these are but the reflex effects of the 
thought-currents of the community. Others are ten- 



90 The Voice of Isis 

dencies stimulated by the influences of the zodiacal 
sign in which you were born acting in a negative way, 
also the negative aspect of your planetary influences, 
all acting upon the atoms of your personality through 
your subconscious mind uncontrolled by the human 
consciousness, to say nothing of inspiration from the 
Super-conscious Mind. You find yourself in the con- 
dition St. Paul speaks of: "I find then a law, that, 
when I would do good, evil is present with me." x And 
the more determined you are to do the will of the 
Divine Self the more unsuspected tendencies you find 
within you to transmute, tendencies which were qui- 
escent or sleeping as long as you advanced passively 
with the current of the community, but which are now 
awakened and fighting for life. 

Do not confuse the sub-conscious with the Super- 
conscious Mind as is so commonly done. The sub- 
conscious is the animal mind, that which is below the 
threshold of human waking consciousness, as sub 
means under or below. It is the sum total of the con- 
sciousness of all the cells, organs, ganglia and centers 
of consciousness in the animal body synthecised by the 
animal Soul. It controls all the vegetative functions 
such as respiration, circulation, digestion, reflex action, 
etc. It is also this mind that automatically reproduces 
that which is impressed upon it by human conscious- 
ness such as an harmonious or inharmonious attitude 
toward life, ideas of health or disease, weakness or 
power, etc. Hence it can be called upon to adjust 
only such conditions as come within its domain, for 
ft is but the servant of man's human consciousness, 
just as man's human consciousness should be the 
servant of the higher or Super-consciousness. 

The Super-conscious mind is the intelligence of the 



1 Romans, VII. 21. 



The Eleventh Commandment 91 

Real Self overshadowing its human personality. It is 
man's touch with the Divine. To come into touch 
with the Higher Consciousness the activities of the 
human consciousness must be stilled, for when the 
mind is controlled it becomes like a mirror to reflect 
and record that which comes to it from the Higher 
Self. 

It is the awakening into activity of these unrecog- 
nized forces that makes the darkness of the night 
period so depressing and awful. Each Soul must face 
this darkness alone. Your attention is called to this 
because "scarce one passes through without bitter 
complaint .... your Teacher or your prede- 
cessor may hold your hand in his, and give you the 
utmost sympathy the human heart is capable of. But 
when the silence and the darkness come, you lose all 
knowledge of him ; you are alone and he cannot help 
you, not because his power is gone, but because you 
have invoked your great enemy. By your great enemy 
I mean yourself. If you have the power to face your 
own Soul in the darkness and silence, you will have 
conquered the physical or animal self which dwells in 
sensation only." * When the light of The Christ has 
illumined your heart and has awakened a recognition 
of your divine possibilities it must also awaken all 
the latent propensities in your composite personality, 
for the same sun which causes the good seed to sprout 
in the garden of your heart will also stimulate in even 
greater profusion the growth of the weeds which, un- 
less ruthlessly uprooted, will choke out the life of the 
good seed. The business then that you must mind 
is to pull up the weeds or conquer the foes within 
one by one as they appear. Make no compromise. 
You must conquer or be overcome. For the very rec- 

1 Comments on Light on the Path. 



92 The Voice of his 

ognition of your divine birthright lashes into fury 
all those forces of the lower self which have held you 
in bondage so long. However, while this step brings 
out every latent fault it also awakens every latent 
power for good. In fact, you never know what you 
really are until the light of The Christ has illumined 
every corner of your being. Ofttimes the unexpected 
beauty and strength revealed is quite as overwhelming 
as the shortcomings. The battle is not onesided. In 
fact, "He that is with you (your Higher Self) is 
greater than he (the personality or lower self) that is 
against you." 

When you find this state of depression and lethargy 
approaching, instead of trying to mind the business of 
another, understand that it is never another's business 
you are to mind nor outside conditions you are to fight, 
but the very forces within that are bringing the doubts 
upon you. The first temptation, when confronted by 
this apparent disillusionment, is to pick flaws, first in 
the teachings which have so greatly helped heretofore, 
then in the personalities of others, hoping thereby to 
excuse your own shortcomings. But you can never 
find truth or happiness by dissecting it, only by turn- 
ing your attention to yourself and finding out why 
you now doubt and criticize that which brought you 
so much happiness and satisfaction at first. Then 
set to work to conquer with a full realization that 
every one of the awakened forces of the lower self 
are fighting to overcome the manifestation of the Real 
Self and make you sink back once more into the passive 
condition in which you were but one of the many and 
your life but the result of the ebb and flow of the 
thought-currents common to your family and environ- 
ment, a creature ruled by circumstances and a slave to 
outward conditions. You never have to fight another's 



The Eleventh Commandment 93 

battles, only your own. Because your personality is 
made up of atoms from the entire community and en- 
vironment in which you dwell, as you overcome your 
own faults by creating their opposites you add strength 
to the power that is striving to conquer the same faults 
in the whole community. Moreover, you cannot thus 
sink back without lending your forces to swell the tide 
that will overwhelm you and all who are near and dear 
to you. Every time you mind another's business or f 
waste force striving with enemies outside yourself you 
are adding strength to the things you would conquer. 
The Christ, speaking through the Master Jesus, has 
said : "In my Father's house are many mansions : 
. . . I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go 
and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and 
receive you unto myself ; that where I am, there ye may 
be also." x The Christ-power is the creative power of 
Divine Love that has brought you up out of the dark- 
ness and set your feet upon a rock; that has literally 
gone before you to prepare your Path. The place The 
Christ is preparing for you is not some post-mortem 
heaven inhabited by beings suddenly perfected through 
the experience called death, but is the place, conditions 
and personality you are now in. If you have been 
called by The Christ to face these particular condi- 
tions rest assured that The Christ has gone before to 
prepare the place for you. But while the mansion or 
dwelling place is chosen and prepared by The Christ 
within, still it is you who must furnish and equip and 
dwell in it. This is the business which you must mind. 
All worldly dwelling places must be shared by all the 
elements of confusion which go to make up the nerson- 
ality — a confused and imperfect reflection of the Real 
Self. Your real mansion is prepared for you by The 

*St. John, XIV. 2,3. 



94 The Voice of his 

Christ, but ere you can dwell in it The Christ must 
come again in your heart and life and receive you unto 
Himself. The first step must be to drive out the aliens 
who are now dwelling in your mansion. 

Since the great aim of physical existence is not per- 
sonal salvation, but the redemption (spiritualization) 
of physical matter and the ultimate evolution of all 
humanity from its lower and merely human state of 
consciousness to oneness with The Christ-conscious- 
ness, each individual Soul finds itself confronted with a 
certain amount of matter from the various kingdoms 
which it is its business to spiritualize and redeem; 
a certain personality with particular traits, tenden- 
cies, passions and desires, out of which, as raw ma- 
terial, the Soul must fashion the furnishings of its 
mansion in the Father's house. How is this to be 
accomplished? Here you are concerned with the 
little physical inequalities and disquietudes of life, 
and you ask over and over again, "If The Christ has 
called me to this higher life, why do not conditions 
immediately change? why is there anything for me 
to do but open my heart and receive the blessings 
promised by the Father?" One reason is that if 
your Father-in-heaven gave you all the conditions you 
now deem so necessary — wealth to use for good, leis- 
ure to study, opportunity to teach, etc. — you would 
either find that when obtained they did not satisfy 
your Soul hunger or that you would sit down exactly 
as you are today with all your faults and deficiencies 
nicely covered over and would never recognize them, 
grow or advance, and be about your Father's business 
— the redemption of the world. Hence you must mind 
your own business ; must empty, cleanse, purify and 
refurnish your mansion or "temple of the living God," x 

1 "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the 
Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" I Cor. III. 16. 



The Eleventh Commandment 95 

that "where I am ye may be also." In other words 
to so prepare your mansion that the Father shall dwell 
with you and The Christ shall be the light thereof. </ 

Why then waste time and force striving for the 
things of the outer world? Why fret and fume over 
the little difficulties you meet in preparing your man- 
sion? why weep and ask for this or that thing? Why 
not just rest in the thought that The Christ has pre- 
pared this place for you and that you must be about 
your business, i. e., using the materials found in your 
personality and environment to furnish the dwelling 
place for Him when He returns to take you unto Him- 
self. For your Father's business is the redemption of 
the world and each apparently separated individuality 
has a special part of that business to perform. 

Each of you have your own problems, and each 
problem brings you up against your own lower self 
and forces you to recognize just what it is that keeps 
your mansion in an unfinished state. Like Hamlet, so 
many feel "The time is out of joint ; — O cursed spite ! 
That ever I was born to set it right!" 1 If you study 
Hamlet you will find that in his attempt to set the 
world aright he only brought sorrow and suf- 
fering to himself and those he loved, and sacrificed 
not only his own personality but also the personality 
of others in his misguided attempt. No person has 
ever been born to set the world aright except so 
much of it as he finds expressed in his own personality. 
If you mind your own business and let the faults of 
others go, trusting to the Law to straighten them out, 
and confine yourself to straightening out your own 
faults, you will realize the joy that comes from such 
conquering. When you cease to worry over the faults 
of others, it will be like a physical burden rolling from 

1 Hamlet, end of Act I. 



96 The Voice of Isis 

your shoulders. If you have never done this, try it 
merely as a physical experiment for your own happi- 
ness, and the results will prove its truth. 

The world can never be redeemed by preaching, 
talking or even by ministering to the sorrows of others, 
relieving their distress, building model tenements or 
libraries or by changing economic conditions. While 
all these things are necessary factors they are only 
really helpful as they are the result of a true minding 
of the business of the Father, recognizing the absolute 
oneness of all, not only in a metaphysical sense, but 
also in the personality and the elements composing it. 
When mankind realizes this, Universal Brotherhood 
will be an accomplished fact. You will then realize in a 
practical way that everything you do to or for another 
will react upon yourself. Then the injunction, Do 
unto others as you would they should do unto you, will 
become the law of life, for you will realize that as you 
do unto others you literally do unto yourself ; that you 
must share the sorrows and joys, the privations and 
honors of even your most distant brothers and sisters. 
This will not be fighting another's battles or minding 
another's business, except as your own conquering 
helps all. It is as though a great building were being 
erected in which each worker by strictly minding his 
own business — which is his part of the great plan, 
whether he be bricklayer or architect — is making the 
work of all easier and advancing the completion of the 
entire structure. Each must share the results of the 
success or failure of any one to mind his own busi- 
ness. 

These results can be attained only by elevating 
to a higher rate of vibration first the thought-forces 
and then the physical conditions of the self, the family, 
the community. This must be accomplished accord- 



The Eleventh Commandment 



97 



ing to the natural law of harmony. If you were in 
a congregation which was singing out of tune, the best 
way to bring about harmony would be not to stop the 
singing and talk about it, but to sing steadily and firmly 
in perfect tune yourself. Those next to you would 
catch and spread the harmony until all were singing in 
tune. It will be only the working out of this law of 
harmony that will ultimately redeem "the round world 
and all that dwell thereon." 

Only the manifestation of The Christ in your heart 
and life can bring peace on earth, goodwill toward 
men. Any line of conduct that really brings peace 
and goodwill is therefore an expression of The 
Christ or Divine Harmony. 



CHAPTER VII. 

NARCOTICS, ALCOHOL AND PSYCHISM. 

The human body is the Temple of the Living God. 1 
Within it are certain vital centers comparable to 
doors 2 which open into inner shrines. Using these 
centers as points of contact, the life forces from the 
higher planes flow into the physical body through 
them as an electrical current flows through a wire. 
And it is through these centers that The Christ- 
force must flow to reach and spiritualize man's va- 
rious bodies before their redemption or resurrection 
can take place. By resurrection we mean the ulti- 
mate building up of a spiritual body within the physi- 
cal by a process of gradually raising the vibrations 
of its particles to respond to the key-note sounded 
by the Divine or Higher Self. 

These centers or doors are normally protected by 
nature with oily coverings or sheaths (composed 
of both astral and physical matter) which permit 
the flow of the normal life-forces and protect them 
from all others. These doors should be opened only 
by a gradual purification and development of the 
protecting sheaths. Normally this takes place as a 
natural growth resulting from a life of mental and 
bodily purity, and intense spiritual aspiration. It 
should not be a forced or hothouse growth, for each 
door must be opened and closed under the absolute 
control of the will. Each individual has been given 
these doors to guard, and is held responsible for 

1 I Corinthians VI. 19. 

1 In ancient times a door meant a passage way leading into a 
chamber and was not used as commonly as now to mean that which 
closed the passage way. 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 99 

their keeping. Only as he can master them, and in 
full knowledge open them to the knock of The Christ, 
and close them to His enemies, can he hope to con- 
quer. It is only after long training and great spirit- 
ual growth that the entities of the astral world can 
be mastered and held at bay when the doors are 
opened. In fact the first and most important work 
of the advanced disciple is to stand faithful watch 
over these doors. "Keep thou the door of thine 
heart." 

The Holy Ghost is the Mother-principle or the 
power of bringing forth, hence, the destruction of 
the sheaths prevents the bringing forth or manifest- 
ing of The Christ-force within you. The sin against 
the Holy Ghost, the "unpardonable sin," (unpardon- 
able only because irreparable) is the separation of 
the personality from the guidance of the Higher 
Self through the destruction of the means of con- 
tact. This takes place through the breaking down of 
the doors or the destruction of the oily sheaths that 
protect the centers leading from the physical into the 
astral and psychic bodies. Once these sheaths are 
destroyed, the person is no longer able to close the 
doors and so becomes an easy prey to the denizens 
of the astral. Such an one becomes a helpless victim 
to any and all sorts of psychic imposition and decep- 
tion. 

There is no such thing as a "lost Soul," but it is 
possible for the personality to persistently refuse the 
guidance of the Higher Self and ultimately break 
away from it entirely and become a lost human-ani- 
mal. The animal life- force of such a soulless entity 
may incarnate several times, each time growing 
more degenerate, until it has finally exhausted the 
force obtained during its contact with the Soul and 



100 The Voice of I sis 

the aggregated atoms disintegrate and return to the 
elements from which they were gathered. The Soul 
in such cases is not lost but is indrawn to await a 
new opportunity to gather up the materials neces- 
sary to clothe itself in a personality. 

There are several abnormal ways in which the 
oily protecting sheaths can be broken down and the 
doors thrown open, chief among which are the use 
of alcohol and narcotic drugs. Chemically speaking, 
ordinary alcohol is ethyl-hydroxide. The ethyl (the 
spirit) vibrates to the highest rate reached by mere 
physical matter, the point where matter transcends 
the physical and enters the astral, the ethyl actually 
functioning on both planes. Narcotic drugs also con- 
tain an ethyl element. The ethyl when taken into 
the body immediately seeks to escape into the astral, 
and it naturally follows the usual avenues of com- 
munication between the two planes. But in escap- 
ing it passes through the centers in a reverse direc- 
tion to the normal current and gradually burns off 
the insulating sheaths until in time they are utterly 
destroyed, just as an electrical insulation might be 
burned off by interference with the normal flow of 
the current. 

This breakdown may be very rapid, as in the case 
of an habitual drunkard or drug fiend, or it may be 
insidious and not show markedly for several incar- 
nations, but the result is certain and every indul- 
gence in the substances mentioned is a step toward 
the end. Ultimately this leaves the doors unguarded 
and open for all the horrors of the lowest astral-plane 
to rush in and take possession of the "Temple of the 
Living God" thus desecrated. Bulwer-Lytton gives 
a realistic description of some of these horrors in 
his occult novel, "Zanoni." In that story the student 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 101 

opened the doors abnormally by the use of drugs and 
being unable to close them through fright at the 
sights that met his gaze, was haunted until his death. 

Tobacco although classed as a narcotic does not 
contain the elements so destructive to the psychic 
centers, in fact when not used to excess is rather 
soothing. It does however, injuriously affect the 
heart and nervous system. From an occult stand- 
point one of the greatest objections to its use is its 
tendency to form a habit. It goes without saying 
that the aspirant for the spiritual life must be master 
of all conditions and functions and a slave to none. 
Hence while tobacco is not rigidly prohibited in the 
earlier stages of growth, its use is strongly advised 
against. 

Tea and coffee are stimulants but not narcotics 
in the sense we use the term, as they do not contain 
the injurious elements. Their excessive use does 
affect the nervous system injuriously, although many 
sensitive persons find that their moderate use has a 
beneficial and tonic effect, but their use should not 
be abused. 

The drunkard and the drug habitue open the doors 
while in a state of debauchery, and in such a con- 
dition, being particularly unable to defend themselves, 
they practically invite all the fiends of the under- 
world to enter and take possession. 

It is our duty to give our sympathy and help 
to this class of sorely afflicted ones, for since it took 
many lives to break down the protective sheaths, it 
will require a long hard fight to rebuild them. Hence 
do not let such unfortunate ones become discouraged. 
No matter how many times they may fall back into the 
old habits, every effort to conquer aids in the rebuild- 
ing. And the very fierceness of the struggle will ulti- 



102 The Voice of I sis 

mately strengthen the Soul. But no matter how sin- 
cerely they repent, or what spiritual advance they 
make as a result of the sufferings they undergo, when 
the aura is tainted with narcotics or filled with fumes 
of alcohol, and until the protective sheaths of these 
centers are rebuilt, it is utterly impossible for a Master 
or Messenger from The Great White Lodge to contact 
(or come anywhere near), such an one, no matter 
how great the student's psychic or spiritual develop- 
ment. On the contrary they will have a bitter fight 
to keep out of their auras entities from the astral- 
plane, and it will require many incarnations of such 
fighting ere the sheaths can be rebuilt. These sheaths 
are not broken down in one incarnation, but since in 
each incarnation there is a tendency to repeat the 
same old mistakes until they are conquered, so in each 
incarnation there is a tendency to increase the weak- 
ness brought over from the past until the final break- 
down comes. The rebuilding must necessarily follow 
the same law, i. e., be brought about by gradual accom- 
plishment through determined and persistent con- 
structive effort. 

We read in the Bible that no drunkard can inherit 
the Kingdom of Heaven. 1 In this sense the Kingdom 
of Heaven means the highest spiritual-plane, which 
can be reached only by the perfect control of the 
doors or centers through which alone communion is 
possible. The Bible does not say that no drunkard 
can be saved, but that he cannot reach into the higher 
spiritual realms and come into conscious touch with 
his Father-in-heaven until he has conquered. He has 
destroyed the means of communication, and it is only 
after earnest and persistent effort, through many lives, 
that such an one can gradually rebuild the sheaths, 

1 I Corinthians. VI. 10. 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 103 

purify the centers, and again make the body a fit 
Temple for the coming of The Christ. Many drunk- 
ards desire to stop drinking but, being open to the 
astral-plane, they are unable to resist the urge of those 
disembodied ones who have passed out of physical 
life while addicted to drink and have no means of 
gratifying their desires in the astral world. In order 
to gratify them they must come into touch with the 
physical-plane by entering into or obsessing someone 
on the physical-plane ere they can again experience 
the effects of the drug. On the other hand there 
are drinkers who simply say "I am done with drink" 
and never touch it thereafter. In such cases they 
are unconsciously rebuilding the centers until finally 
a point is reached where the doors can be closed at 
will, and it only requires some strong emotion to put 
the will into effect. This will is often aroused in a 
dramatic manner at the sudden "conversions" which 
so frequently result from various forms of religious 
excitement. 

It is only in a normal, purified, strong and healthy 
body, with every function at its highest degree of 
development and every center under perfect control 
that The Christ can fully manifest on earth. You can 
live The Christ-life and attain to a high degree of 
spirituality and take many advanced steps without 
meeting all these requirements, but you cannot reach 
Mastery without fulfilling all the Law. 

One of the most noticeable karmic results of the use 
of narcotics and alcohol in past incarnations can be 
seen in the numerous non-spiritual, subjective me- 
diums, of the irresponsible type, who are to be found 
on every hand. Their doors, destroyed in past lives, 
now stand wide open leaving them at the mercy of any 
and every entity who desires to gratify its animal 



104 The Voice of I sis 

senses upon the physical-plane. Truly, their lot is a 
pitiable one ; the more so because they know not the 
terrible dangers they run. 

Another karmic result of the action of alcohol and 
drugs is to be found in a certain class of congenital 
imbeciles whose psychic centers cannot even connect 
with the ordinary centers of the physical body ; in fact 
many of them are the reincarnations of the soulless 
entities mentioned above. They have almost no vol- 
untary control of any but the lowest animal functions,' 
and must finish out their incarnation in a sort of veg- 
etative animal existence. 

Still another way in which the doors are frequently 
broken open is by placing yourself in a passive, non- 
resisting state and making the demand for psychic ex- 
periences, or "sitting for development" as it is called. 
In this practice you are placing yourself in a negative 
state in which any entity dwelling on the lower astral- 
plane can help you break open the doors. This either 
destroys the doors or abnormally forces the develop- 
ment of the psychic centers instead of unfolding them 
as a natural accompaniment of spiritual growth. 
When results have been thus obtained, since the doors 
are not under the control of your will, they are open 
to any entity who desires to obsess you. Even if the 
obsessing entity is a disembodied friend of good moral 
character your condition is not altered, for he must 
be near you constantly to protect you from the fiends. 1 
This is what takes place in ordinary subjective me- 
diumship. As we said in Letters From The Teacher 2 
"The difference between spiritual communication and 
subjective mediumship is a difference both of vibra- 
tion and method. The right way to contact the higher 
planes is to raise the vibrations of your physical and 

1 See The Shadow Land, by Hamlin Garlin. 
• Page 44. 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 105 

psychic bodies and their centers until they vibrate in 
harmony with the key-note of the Soul-plane, at which 
pitch "no evil thing can come nigh thy dwelling." 
As we can only become aware of a thing when some 
part of our organism responds to its vibrations, the 
psychic must have the proper development to come 
into harmony with the spiritual-plane ere he can con- 
tact the Masters or respond to things which touch upon 
or vibrate within the octave of their key-note. 

"On the one hand — spiritual communication — the 
psychic, through spiritual living, loving thoughts and 
helpful actions in many lives, must build into his or 
her character enough of the divine principle of Com- 
passion for all humanity to raise the vibrations of all 
the bodies, either temporarily or continuously, to the 
note of spiritual love to which the Masters of Com- 
passion naturally vibrate. On the other hand — sub- 
jective mediumship — the psychic, through various 
means, either mentally by stilling the thoughts, or 
phvsically by various Yogi practices such as gazing 
at a crystal, a black spot, or sitting in a constrained 
position, through breathing exercises and many other 
still more objectionable practices — has gained the 
power of stilling the physical vibrations and becom- 
ing negative; or when through the oily sheaths hav- 
ing become weakened or destroyed the psychic is nat- 
urally negative. In such a state the physical atoms, not 
being held together by the vibratory rhythm to which 
they naturally respond, slow down and fly off to such 
an extent that any discarnate entity clothed in atoms 
of, and vibrating to the note of, the astral-plane — 
which is next to and in its lower degrees overlaps the 
earth-plane — can gather up and clothe himself in suf- 
ficient of the physical atoms thus thrown off to tem- 
porarily vibrate to the key-note of the physical-plane 
and become temporarily recognizable on that plane. 



106 The Voice of Ists 

"In the first instance the whole desire of the psychic 
is to uplift humanity; he is filled with compassion for 
the Race and desires to give himself as a willing sac- 
rifice to bring enlightenment to the world. This is 
true spiritual development. The Teachers and Mas- 
ters whom he contacts do not see the little individ- 
ual difficulties, or if They do, They understand the 
Law and know that all is working out for the best, 
that only Wisdom can really help. Given Wisdom, 
Love and sustaining help, the disciples can, and indeed 
must, work out their own personal problems. As 
Paul says : "Work out your own salvation with fear 
and trembling." All spiritual communication is up- 
lifting, and the spiritual atoms which the psychic has 
contacted and drawn into his body will rejuvenate 
and strengthen the physical, uplift the mental and ad- 
vance him on the Path of Spiritual Attainment. 

"In the second instance, by giving up the command 
over the life-forces and throwing open or breaking 
down the doors of the sacred centers, the vitality is 
drawn upon and the atoms thrown off are used to 
bring to the physical-plane the denizens of the astral. 
These may be pure or vile, and are attracted to the 
medium in exact ratio to the state of the atoms which 
he or she gives off during the negative "sitting." If 
you understand this, and the fact that most of the 
entities contacted upon the astral plane are not 
Spiritual Beings, but merely men and women with 
their most dense and outer garment (the physical 
body) removed, you will understand the danger of 
giving yourself up to their use. Since they are using 
astral senses they can see farther ahead than those 
of the earth-plane, but such advice as they have to 
give should be taken just as you would take the ad- 
vice of any earthly friend — subject to your own good 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 107 

judgment and common-sense. Usually such entities 
are interested in the daily life of the sitters rather than 
their true spiritual advance, but, if evilly disposed or 
lacking Wisdom and a knowledge of the Law, they 
can and often do deceive. They can only come to earth 
as they left it, i. e., clothed in physical atoms ; the fact 
that to manifest on the physical-plane they must steal 
physical atoms from the medium and sitters is proof 
positive of this. Often their desire is to help alleviate 
earthly conditions, but their advice, while valuable in 
many cases, is still in accord with worldly standards. 
In fact their activity is much like that of a well-mean- 
ing but over-meddlesome friend on the earth-plane. 
They desire to help their friends out of difficulties, 
over hard places, and often give advice which helps 
to make money out of the credulity of their fellow-men. 
This, as you can see, but helps to sink the Race deeper 
into the mire of earthly affairs. The first is the Con- 
structive, the second the Destructive method of com- 
munication. In no case — unless they are Masters, in 
which case they will manifest quite differently, as we 
will explain later — are they different from the people 
on earth, except that they are functioning in a body 
composed of finer matter. 

"You can not always tell which of the above men- 
tioned methods have been used by the teachings re- 
ceived, for even in subjective mediumship the teach- 
ing may be of a higher moral character, just as some 
friend might give you a highly moral address. But no 
matter who the entity claims to be, he will not be a 
Master of Wisdom if the subjective method is used, 
for no Master of the Right Hand Path ever uses that 
method. In this case it is not a question of what 
teachings are given, but how they are given. 

"One absolute test as to which method a psychic is 



108 The Voice of I sis 

using and from whence the messages come is the effect 
on the physical body. In spiritual communication the 
psychic is clothed upon by spiritual atoms which self- 
effacement and compassion have drawn to him, and 
he grows more spiritual. If after the experience his 
vitality is augmented and a peaceful, happy and vig- 
orous feeling remains, even for days afterward ; if life 
seems fuller, trials easier to bear and love more abun- 
dant, you can rest assured that he has risen above 
earthly things and has been clothed upon by the Spirit, 
and has brought back lessons for the benefit of human- 
ity. This is the form of communion with the higher 
planes that should be desired. But do not strive for it ; 
let it come as a natural growth resulting from a life 
filled with loving, unselfish thoughts and deeds. 

"In subjective mediumship, however, owing to the 
loss of physical atoms and vitality, the psychic is de- 
pleted and weakened, and soon shows it, not only in 
bodily health, but also in mental power. His nervous 
system is enervated, his mentality is dulled and a great 
stumbling-block has been placed in his path. If, after 
communicating, the psychic is exhausted, tired, nerv- 
ous, cross, fretful and uneasy, even for days, you can 
rest assured that he has allowed some astral entity to 
absorb his vitality and contact him by the second and 
destructive method. It must be remembered, how- 
ever, that even the psychic who uses the constructive 
or correct method of communication is far more highly 
sensitive than the average and hence is easily affected 
by any lack of harmony in surrounding conditions, 
either physical or mental, and often suffers from such 
conditions, although later is able to conquer or rise 
above them. This is one reason why in all ancient 
religions the Sibyl or inspired Priestess was always 
surrounded by love, beauty and harmony and sacredly 
protected against all forms of inharmony." 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 109 

We are now nearing the end of the Fifth Root-Race 1 
of the Fourth Round (having just entered its sixth 
sub-race) and are reaching a point where, if we have 
been diligent, we should begin to lift up our eyes and 
see our Father afar off and say : "I will arise and go to 
my Father." Many are beginning to unfold their in- 
ner faculties and realize the presence or perhaps hear 
the voice of their Divine Guide and Teacher, and re- 
ceive messages and teachings from Him. While the 
teachings of the Masters are always true — for there 
can be no confusion, since they are all One, and give 
out identical teachings — yet psychics who have never 
studied the philosophy of evolution and rebirth, or 
the laws of communication with such Beings, cannot 
always grasp, hence cannot correctly interpret, the les- 
sons given, and much confusion results owing to the 
intellectual limitations of the instrument they must use 
i. e., the physical brain. The physical brain cannot 
grasp or respond to ideas of which the pictures, or 
at least some conception — the seed, so to speak — has 
not been acquired through the outer sense organs, i. e., 
through study, observation, etc. At this point there 
are many, many avenues of deception, hence the great 
necessity for the pupil to come under proper instruc- 
tion, and above all to learn that strict obedience to the 
laws which ages of occult training have proved to be 
the only safeguards, is a necessity, which laws he can- 
not find out for himself in one incarnation. Nor can 
he find them out through the guidance of astral teach- 
ers, for no matter how well-intentioned such teachers 
may be, they are still limited to the stage of their own 
evolution. Hence only those who have passed through 
all stages of evolution and have mastered the Law 
can give such training. Such great Teachers do not 

1 For an account of the Rounds and Races, see Chapters XV and 
XVII, also the Theosophical text books, such as "Ancient Wisdom," 
"Th* Ocean of Theosophy," etc. 



110 The Voice of Isis 

impart this training through astral means, for they 
have left well-authenticated records and text-books of 
their philosophy. Hence like any other scientific study, 
only when the student has familiarized himself with 
the fundamentals of the science will the advanced 
Teacher attempt to communicate with him, for those 
great Teachers know only too well the temptations and 
deceptions of the astral-plane and their great desire 
is to protect humanity from these dangers rather 
than to lead into them. Much better for a teacher to 
throw a pupil into the water ere he had been told how 
to swim. 

Just as a college contains the accumulated wisdom 
and experience of all who have made discoveries in 
any line of study, while an individual experimenting 
alone has only his own experience to guide him and 
must make many blundering mistakes which a col- 
lege training would have prevented, so it is in occult- 
ism. 

The Bible is full of references to these psychic cen- 
ters. Whenever doors or gates are mentioned in the 
Scriptures the reference is to these sacred centers. 
The following are a few of the many references : "Lift 
up your heads, O ye gates ; and be ye lifted up, ye 
everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come 
in." 1 

The Children of Israel were told to take the blood 
of the sacrificial lamb (symbolizing The Christ-force 
sacrificed in humanity) and "strike the lintel and the 
two side posts with the blood that is in the bason ; and 
none of you shall go out at the door of his house until 
the morning" 2 as a sign that "the Lord will pass over 
the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come into 
your houses to smite you." 

1 Psalms, XXIV, 7. 
» Exodus, XII, 22-21. 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 111 

The whole story of Job is but a history of an initia- 
tion. In it Job laments as his chief sin that he opened 
his door to the "traveler" 1 ; and again he asks, "have 
the gates of death been opened unto thee ? or hast thou 
seen the doors of the shadow of death ?" 2 Both of 
these statements are incomprehensible from any lit- 
eral point of view, but are plain in the light of the 
above. Wisdom is spoken of as "she crieth at the 
gates, at the entry of the city, at the coming in at the 
doors." 3 In Isaiah we have the invitation : "Come, 
my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut 
thy doors about thee." * This is a condition necessary 
to entering into communion with the spiritual-plane, 
for the doorg must be shut to the lower ere they can 
be opened to the higher. In the New Testament we 
have these directions as to prayer (spiritual commu- 
nion), "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy 
closet, and when thou has shut thy door (i. e., shut 
out all worldly and astral conditions), pray to thy 
Father which is in secret; and thy Father which see- 
eth in secret shall reward thee openly." 5 

A most significant allusion to the necessity for mas- 
tery over the doors is given in St. Luke. 6 "Strive 
to enter in at the straight gate : for many, I say unto 
you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able. When 
once the master of the house is risen up, and hath 
shut to the door. . . . But he shall say, I tell you, 
I know not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye 
workers of iniquity." To whom can this dismissal ap- 
ply but to those without the gates? This plainly al- 
ludes to that state of development in which we have 
gained such mastery over the doors that we can shut 
them to all undesirable influences, even though they 

1 Job, XXXI.32. * Isaiah, XXVI.20. 

'Job, XXXVIII.17. *St. Matthew, VI.6. 

'Proverbs, VIII.3. • St. Luke, XIII.24-27. 



112 The Voice of I sis 

have supped with us, and say, "Depart all ye work- 
ers of iniquity," and make them depart. For you must 
be the master of your house. 

Again, in St. John X, 1-3, we read, "Verily, verily, 
I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into 
the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the 
same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth 
in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him 
the porter openeth: and the sheep hear his voice: and 
he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them 
out." 

Note carefully the promise given to the angel of the 
Church of Philadelphia, in Revelation III, 7-13: "Be- 
hold I have set before thee an open door, and no man 
can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast 
kept my word, and hast not denied my name." This 
promise is now being literally fulfilled as these are the 
last days of the cycle, and this Movement is the "open 
door" referred to. The cry of The Christ rings in 
the ears of every student who reads this lesson : "Be- 
hold, I (The Christ- force) stand at the door, (the 
heart center) and knock: if any man hear my voice, 
and open the door, I will come in unto him, and will 
sup with him, and he with me." 

Just as there is danger in opening the doors of the 
individual, so it is with all spiritual movements. Every 
movement really sent out by the Great White Lodge 
is a vital center or door in the great body of humanity, 
and as such doors are opened it becomes the duty of 
every student who enters therein to sacredly guard 
his door, and see to it that only The Christ-force shall 
enter, else, just as with individual doors, evil psychic 
forces will pour in. 

The door which this Movement symbolizes is a door 
for all humanity. It is the door of the heart center 



Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism 113 

through which the love-force is poured out to all the 
centers. If a movement be established through mere 
psychism, emotionalism, or the desire of some person- 
ality to shine as a teacher, then the evil forces of the 
lower astral-planes are poured out upon its followers 
instead of The Christ-force, even if some of the teach- 
ings given out are seemingly helpful. It will be 
noticeable, however, in such movements that the spirit 
of loving fellowship is absent and in its place is a ten- 
dency for their leaders to demand personal aggran- 
dizement. 

Therefore, all students of the higher life, when con- 
fronted with a spiritual movement should seek in the 
Silence the guidance, not of any mortal, but of 
their own Higher Self in regard to it. The question 
is not merely whether they find in the movement cer- 
tain things which they can accept while rejecting 
others, but that they must determine what force is 
being poured out through that door (movement). For 
every person belonging to a spiritual movement (as 
well as its leaders), is absolutely responsible for the 
force that enters the body of humanity through them, 
as well as for the force they bring into the movement. 

If any movement is brought to your attention, and 
it be a true spiritual movement, it is the open door for 
you, and comes to you in response to your prayers for 
more light and help. If it be not a true spiritual move- 
ment then it comes to you as a test of your ability to 
use your intuition and judgment. Therefore do not 
accept the teachings of this or any other spiritual or 
occult movement until through prayerful considera- 
tion and meditation you receive the confirmation of 
your own Divine Guidance that it is the open door for 
your next step. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

A STUDY OF KARMA. 

"Be not deceived ; God is not mocked : for 
whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." 

Galatians VI. 7. 

The word Karma is of Eastern origin and has no 
exact equivalent in the English language. It signifies 
the working of a great fundamental law. "This law 
— whether conscious or unconscious — predestines 
nothing and no one. It exists from and in Eternity 
truly for it is Eternity itself; and as such, since no 
act can be coequal with Eternity, it cannot be said 
to act, for it is Action itself. It is not the wave which 
drowns a man, but the personal action of the wretch 
who goes deliberately and places himself under the 
impersonal action of the laws that govern the ocean's 
motion. Karma creates nothing, nor does it design. 
It is man who plans and creates causes, and Karmic 
Law adjusts the effects, which adjustment is not an 
act, but universal harmony, tending ever to resume its 
original position, like a bough, which, bent down too 
forcibly, rebounds with corresponding vigor. If it 
happen to dislocate the arm that tried to bend it out 
of its natural position, shall we say that it is the bough 
which broke our arm, or that our own folly has 
brought us to grief? ... It has not involved its 
decrees in darkness purposely to perplex man; nor 
shall it punish him who dares to scrutinize its myster- 
ies. On the contrary, he who through study and medi- 
tation unveils its intricate paths, and throws light on 
those dark ways, in the windings of which so many 
men perish owing to their ignorance of the labyrinth 



A Study of Karma 115 

of life — is making for the good of his fellowmen. 
Karma is an Absolute and Eternal Law in the World 
of Manifestation; and as there can only be one Abso- 
lute, as One eternal ever-present Cause, believers in 
Karma cannot be regarded as Atheists or Material- 
ists — still less as Fatalists, for Karma is one with the 
Unknowable, of which it is an aspect, in its effects 
in the phenomenal world." 1 

While Karma is the implacable Law of Cause and 
Effect, bringing to you in exact justice the net re- 
sults of your past thoughts, desires and acts, it does 
not do so in detail and hence is not the avenging 
Nemesis it is so frequently represented to be. "For 
the only decree of Karma — an eternal and immutable 
decree — is absolute Harmony in the world of Matter as 
it is in the world of Spirit. It is not, therefore, Karma 
that rewards or punishes, but it is we who reward or 
punish ourselves, according as we work with, through 
and along with Nature, abiding by the laws on which 
that harmony depends, or — breaking them." 2 It is not 
your acts that are the cause of your Karma, but the 
possession or lack of certain Soul-qualities which is 
the cause both of your thoughts, desires and acts, 
whose effects are brought to you by the great Law 
of Harmony for readjustment. The "Lords of 
Karma," 3 spoken of so frequently in the Oriental 
teachings would mean, in European parlance, the con- 
scious forces which bring about the natural sequence 
of events. These forces, however, are not blind, un- 
intelligent streams of force against which you must 
hopelessly battle, but are the conscious, intelligent Ex- 
ecutors of the Law of Divine Harmony (Love). Their 
sole o bject is to spiritualize and perfect both the planet 

! The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II, p. 319. 
"Ibid, Vol. I, 704-5. 
_ ' Referred to in Ezekiel I, 5, as the "Four living creatures. And 
this was their appearance; they had the likeness of a man." 



116 The Voice of I sis 

and its inhabitants. Hence disobedience to the Law 
is not punished but is adjusted, even though the ad- 
justment brings about sorrow and suffering. 

The decrees of Karma are not something to be en- 
dured as a punishment, but if in ages past you have 
made mistakes and failed to gain certain Soul-qual- 
ities which are necessary for your further progress, 
these great entitized Powers place before the Soul 
the conditions — which are made necessary by your 
past disobedience or inaction — which the Soul itself 
chooses as the best means of learning the needed les- 
sons and acquiring the needed qualities. The per- 
sonality may suffer during the experiences it under- 
goes in the conditions selected by the Soul; but just 
as a tornado brings destruction yet is beneficial in 
purifying the atmosphere and sweeping away old ac- 
cumulated conditions which were detrimental, so with 
the karmic storms which sweep over the personality; 
for their purpose is to sweep away old false ways of 
thinking that new Soul-qualities may put forth and 
bear fruit. Although the tornado is a result of the in- 
harmony and impurity created by man, still it is used 
as an agent of Karma to dissipate the accumulated 
forces of evil and to readjust the atmosphere and per- 
mit new conditions more advantageous for the evo- 
lution of the planet and its inhabitants to manifest. 
Thus the tornado was not the cause of the destruc- 
tion of life and property in its path, it was merely the 
agent for adjusting the causes set up by man. 

So with the storms of sorrow, disaster, and pov- 
erty in your life. Everything that comes to you as 
trouble or sorrow is simply the result of your own 
shortcomings, your failure to learn the lessons which 
less painful experiences should have taught you. The 
fundamental idea of Karma is Harmony. It is not a 



r A Study of Karma 117 

punishment; not even an inevitable law of suffering 
which you must endure. But in the course of your 
evolution your Higher Self chooses to incarnate in 
certain families and under certain conditions which 
will bring out the Soul-quality which is lacking. The 
conditions chosen may be the result of causes set up 
by you in past lives, owing to a lacking quality, or if 
all those previous causes have been worked out, they 
may be chosen by the Soul de novo to develop a new 
Soul-quality, without having had any previous con- 
nection with them. The main idea of Karma then 
is not one of punishment for past failures, but that 
you may learn your lessons and gain as quickly as 
possible the Soul-qualities needed, that you may ful- 
fill your destiny, your special place and work in the 
Grand Plan. When the lessons have been learned 
and the quality gained the Law is fulfilled and there 
is neither Karma nor anything else to hold you to the 
old conditions, except your own free-will. And if 
you hold to them after you have learned the lesson 
you are but setting up fresh Karma. 

Therefore, instead of sitting down dejectedly and 
saying that you will bear everything as your Karma, 
much as a child might stoically bear a whipping, rather 
be like the child who recognizes the justice of the whip- 
ping and sees behind it the loving desire of its parents 
to inculcate a needed lesson and whose heart is filled 
with sorrow that it has made the whipping necessary. 

It is foolish to invoke your past Karma with the 
idea of working it out more quickly, for the Law will 
bring it to you as fast as you are able to conquer and 
learn the lessons from it. To thus demand that your 
Karma be precipitated is to be overwhelmed by ter- 
rible sufferings in order to learn the lessons which a 
little later you would be strong enough to learn with 



118 The Voice of I sis 

little or no suffering. To thus demand your Karma 
would be to set up your judgment as superior to that 
of the Lords of Karma, thus showing a lack both of 
discretion and humility. Hence special trials might 
have to come to you to teach you the lessons which 
otherwise you might have learned happily while work- 
ing out the Law normally as life brought it to you. 

While you must learn poise and calm under all con- 
ditions, at the same time you must seek earnestly with- 
in yourself for the Soul-quality which your trials are 
most fitted to bring to the surface. And when you have 
recognized it strive earnestly to cultivate that quality 
and manifest it in your life. Then the old conditions 
will quickly begin to fall away from you, although 
you will pass through a period of severe testing to 
prove whether or not you have really learned the les- 
son and built the desired quality into your Soul. Learn- 
ing the lesson, however, does not mean merely recog- 
nizing it or gaining an intellectual conception of what 
is lacking, but gaining the poiver to manifest that qual- 
ity, for the change must be within, not merely on the 
surface. Recognition of what is lacking is a necessary 
step in attaining it, but when recognized then comes 
the testing to see if you have really gained the quality 
or merely recognized the lack. For instance, if you 
know that your great lack is impatience or lack of con- 
trol of your temper, as long as only its outward mani- 
festation is controlled you will still suffer from the 
effects of anger, for your friends will say, "He man- 
aged to control his temper, but I could see he was 
boiling inside." 

If your lacking quality is generosity and you 
recognize the necessity of being generous but give 
merely because you believe it your duty or because 
you expect gratitude in return, those who receive 



A Study of Karma 119 

your gifts will instinctively feel the grudging atti- 
tude of Soul back of the gift and will not send out 
the feeling of gratitude you are seeking. You will 
thus suffer from ingratitude until you can give with 
true generosity of Soul. It is not your Karma to 
suffer from specific acts of anger or ingratitude, but 
it is your Karma to learn control of your temper and 
generosity of Soul. If you are driving an automobile 
and notice something wrong with the engine and stop 
and adjust it, no harm results. But if you are careless 
and do not correct the trouble and the machine is 
wrecked and you are injured, it was not your Karma 
to be injured by an automobile, but it was your Karma 
to be taught carefulness and common-sense. Hence 
it is not your specific acts that bring your Karma to 
you but the lacking of Soul-quality; and any available 
events, conditions or circumstances are used to teach 
you the necessary lessons. Your acts are like leaves 
on a tree, the result of the amount and character of 
the sap. If the sap is lacking in life-force or is dis- 
eased, the leaves will wither and fall ; but if the follow- 
ing season the sap is enriched and regains its lack- 
ing quality the tiee will put forth perfect green leaves. 
It was not the fault of the leaves that they dropped, 
but a lacking quality in the trees. As you realize that 
it is yourself who is responsible for all the disturbing 
influences which surround you and that it rests with 
you to overcome them by eliminating their causes, you 
have begun in the right way to work with the Law 
and gain Self-knowledge and Self-poise. Make your- 
self one with the Law and all its manifestations will 
work in harmony. 

The above is but one phase of the Law. In addition 
to personal Karma there is the Karma of the family, 
the community, the nation, the country, the Race and 



120 The Voice of his 

the world, all of which modify and are modified by 
the personal Karma. For instance, we all suffer from 
the storms and rigors of climatic conditions yet some 
have ample shelter while others have none, we all 
endure the economic conditions of society, its inequal- 
ities, its injustices, etc., yet some suffer more acutely 
than others according to their personal Karma. All 
members of a family are subject to the same environ- 
ment, but individual members modify or rise above 
it. 

Thus the individual, the family, the nation, and 
the planet are, both individually and collectively, 
learning their lessons. The lesson for the individual 
is to recognize his responsibility in bringing about 
such conditions ; also the necessity for doing all in his 
power to bring about better conditions, not only for 
himself alone but for all. For he cannot gain the 
Soul-qualities he is here to learn without advancing 
the evolution of the entire planet to a certain extent. 

Many students of life feel that a great injustice has 
been done them in that the Masters whom they are 
trying to serve do not remove their physical burdens 
and push them into positions of ease where they will 
be able to devote their time and thought to the 
Master's work. The Masters are just as sub- 
ject to the Law of Karma as is the lowliest of earth's 
children — They can work with it but not control it. A 
farmer does the best he can to cultivate his fields, but 
he cannot make a grain of wheat grow where a grain 
of rye has been planted. He can enrich the soil and 
cultivate it so it can bring forth a perfect crop of 
rye, but the environment (the field) and the climate 
will still be the same, and the grain will still be rye, 
not wheat. This law is a benign and beneficent one, 
for it is only by reaping what we have sown, and eat- 



A Study of Karma 121 

ing of the fruits thereof, that we can ever learn to 
plant wheat instead of tares. 

Karma is looked upon by many as merely the re- 
sult of their actions in past lives which determine 
their present condition and environment. It is this 
and much more. With the separation of humanity 
into the sexes at the close of the Third Race, or as 
the church puts it, "The fall of Man," 1 the Lords of 
Karma took charge of the evolution of the personal- 
ized infant humanity and personal Karma became 
operative; the so-called "fall" of man being in reality 
not a fall but a necessary descent into physical em- 
bodiment. 

Considering humanity as one, as the great body of 
the Heavenly Man reflected upon the lowest earth- 
plane and broken up into myriad expressions, each 
Soul or cell of this Great Body starts out with but one 
primal controlling desire, namely, to gain the neces- 
sary experience to fit it to take its proper place and 
perfectly fulfill its function in the Grand Plan and be- 
come one with its Father-in-heaven. With this end 
in view the Soul marks out a path that influences it 
in all its future incarnations, the local Karma of each 
incarnation being but eddies along the main stream. 
While the Soul, in its higher aspect, always realizes its 
destiny, it must gain its experience in and work 
through various personalities and is responsible for 
the actions of those personalities. It must build them 
up from life to life and is responsible for their creation, 
even to the matter of which they are composed. Thus 
the Soul 2 becomes the Higher Self or personal God 
and Saviour of the various personalities. The per- 
sonality may not heed the "still small voice" of the 

1 Genesis I, 27; "In the image of God created he (the Elohim) him; 
male and female, created he them." 

' Do not confuse the term "Soul" with the astral body. It is 
used herein as synonymous with the Higher Self. 



122 The Voice of I sis 

Soul and may fail and fall and sin, but each failure 
must be corrected and redeemed and the personality 
brought back to its real work. 

The number of incarnations depends upon how 
swiftly the Soul gains its experience and learns its 
lessons, or in how many by-paths the personality is 
allowed to wander, only to retrace its steps to the 
main path. It is the retracing of these wandering 
steps that is ordinarily referred to as Karma — cause 
and effect — the cause being the going astray, violating 
the Law, the effect the retracing of the steps, the re- 
turn to harmony. This is beautifully condensed in 
the Bible story of the Prodigal Son. 1 Often incarna- 
tion after incarnation is spent in a sort of a lethargy, 
experiencing again and again the same things with- 
out learning the lesson they are intended to teach. 
Sorrow and suffering and loss are often the only 
weapons that can awaken the personality from its 
lethargy to ultimately accomplish the main work. 

No two Souls have or need precisely the same ex- 
perience. If we take the circulation of the blood, from 
the time it is propelled outward from the heart to per- 
form its work, to the time it returns again to the 
center, we will have a fair illustration of the work- 
ing of the Law of Karma. Humanity as a whole is 
the blood stream composed of myriads of personalized 
corpuscles, all propelled by the one living force and 
vitalized by the one Breath to accomplish its great 
work in the Heavenly Man. Man is possessed of free- 
will in that his Higher Self has the will to accomplish 
its great work, but the will of the personality is only 
free in a limited sense. It is free to stray from the 
path, and the Higher Self cannot compel obedience 
but can only take advantage of every experience to 

*St. Luke XV, 11-32. 



A Study of Karma 123 

mould the personality and ultimately bring it into the 
main channel. 

The Soul, being complex in its nature, must seek 
for experience upon the plane of differentiation (phys- 
ical-plane) through masculine and feminine personal- 
ities. Just as the blood corpuscles start out from the 
heart to accomplish their work in the tissues, and after 
having been purified by the breath return to the heart, 
so these separated expressions of the Soul start out 
from the center upon their great journey (called in 
the Eastern teachings, "the cycle of necessity"), and 
having been purified by the Spirit, return to their Fath- 
er-in-heaven. The blood may have a long tedious 
journey and be met by apparently insurmountable 
obstacles ere it can accomplish its work and enter the 
stream that is returning to the heart, just so the Soul 
may have to overcome great obstacles before it can 
return to the heart center. This point of return is the 
awakening of the personality to its Higher Self. It 
may be called "conversion" or what you will, but it 
is a recognition of its immortal destiny and a deter- 
mination to walk consciously in the chosen path, its 
will one with that of its Higher Self. This, however, 
does not mean that the old Karma has been wiped out, 
for as the Master Jesus plainly stated, "For verily I 
say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or 
one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be 
fulfilled." 1 

Many ask how the doctrine of Karma can be recon- 
ciled with the doctrine of forgiveness of sins, but a 
simple illustration will explain. If a beloved child 
through disobedience should pull down upon itself 
some heavy object and break a limb, its parents would 
forgiv e the disobedience, soothe its suffering and lav- 

1 St. Matthew V, 18. 



124 The Voice of I sis 

ish love upon it, but the forgiveness could not prevent 
the child from reaping the results of its acts, i. e., could 
not restore the broken limb, for that could be brought 
about only by slow and painful readjustment — the 
knitting of the bones — perhaps with some deformity 
remaining, no matter how great the forgiveness and 
love. 

All the obstacles encountered are not necessarily 
the result of the Soul's minor Karma, but may be a 
necessary training to fit it for its chosen work. For 
instance, if you wished to train a horse to be a hunter, 
you would take it into the fields, put obstacles in its 
path and teach it to jump, but if you desired it to be 
a staid family horse you would teach it not to jump, 
but to jog quietly along the smooth, beaten roadway. 

You can see this Law exemplified everywhere in 
Nature. The seed contains the future tree, and if it 
germinates beneath a rock, or if its growth is impeded 
by any untoward condition, it will struggle to overcome 
that condition, and no matter how distorted the growth 
of its form, it will finally develop into the exact species 
of a tree pictured within the seed, even though its out- 
ward form is imperfect. 

Therefore, going back to our first simile, if the 
stream of your Karma carries you to the feet or the 
hands, to the brain or heart of the Heavenly Man, do 
the duty that lies nearest you cheerfully and to the 
best of your ability, and diligently learn the lessons 
that its perfect accomplishment will teach. It is the 
duty of the feet to support and carry; the hands to 
execute; the brain to plan and direct; the heart to 
furnish the life-force to all parts ; but unless each per- 
forms its duty in its ozvn place, and performs it well, 
the whole man must suffer. 



A Study of Karma 



125 



Let go then, the things that are holding you back. 
Throw yourself into the stream. Push out into the 
current where you will not get stranded in the eddies. 
Cease to cling so desperately to the rocks and snags 
against which you are tossed, for they are a sign of 
shallow water. Have faith to believe that your brothers 
and sisters are also in the stream in their proper place, 
and are learning the lessons they have incarnated to 
learn. Have faith that your Father-in-heaven knows 
their needs as well as your own, and is watching over 
them as well as you, and has pro mised that "no_good 
thing will He withhold from them that love Hlm/^ 



Op 






CHAPTER IX. 

THE SELF. 

!!!_ AM, the resurrection, and the life: he that 
believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he 
live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me 
shall never die." St. John, XI. 25-26. 

"Saith the Great Law: 'In order to become the 
knower of ALL SELF, thou hast first of SELF 
to be the knower.' To reach the knowledge of that 
SELF, thou hast to give up Self to Non-Self, Be- 
ing to Non-Being, and then thou canst repose be- 
tween the wings of the GREAT BIRD. . . . 
Bestride the Bird of Life, if thou would'st know." 
The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment 1. 

The I AM which is the resurrection and the life is 
the True Self. 

We are "dead" when our consciousness is identified 
with the lower personal self and bounded by the mortal 
body and its functions. 

The personal self, however, can be made a good and 
faithful servant, hence it is not to be despised, killed 
out and swallowed up in the way so frequently inter- 
preted, for without it the Real Self could not gain the 
experiences of physical existence. It is a garment 
worn to protect the Real Self from the coarse and 
harsh vibrations of physical life, just as a diver dons 
a diving suit to protect him from the pressure of the 
water when he wishes to explore the ocean's depths. 
But if it loses touch with the Higher Self it is doomed, 
just as is the diver when he loses touch with the upper 
world and his supply of air is cut off. 

If you are wedded to the idea of the lower personal 
self and consider it all-important or all there is, you 
must reach a stage of growth in which your ideals, 



The Self 127 

your enthusiasm and zest in life, which at one time 
gushed forth like a mountain freshet, must die or lose 
themselves in the sands of earth conditions or be dried 
up by the hot scorching sun of criticism and worldly 
disapproval. But if you bestride the Bird of Life or 
Jiold for jour central idea the thought of the I^AM^-r- 
jcloI the mere personality but the Higher, Divine Self 
or The Christos— even those former ideals though 
dead, shall rise again, be spiritualized and never die. 
Just as the diver, if he holds fast to his source of sup- 
ply, will be enabled to do his work and when it is 
accomplished, will rise into the upper air and take off 
his clumsy accoutrements. Should he think, however, 
that the diving-suit was himself, or should he lose 
his memory of the higher world, he could never rise 
from the depths and return to his real home. 

If in the face of all obstacles you go on trusting and 
centering your ideals on the True Self which is im- 
mortal, your faith can never die, for you will know 
that the Real Self can never be affected by the chang- 
ing conditions of earth life. This is bestriding the Bird 
of Life. As long as you hold firmly to this idea you 
hold the reins which shall guide the Bird of Life 
throughout eternity. 

The I is the only symbol in the alphabet that stands 
both for Deity — the straight vertical line symbolizing 
Spirit descending into matter — and for personality. As 
you advance along the Path and reach up through and 
above the personality and follow the straight line 
upward into Divinity, the personality blends into and 
becomes the Individuality; 1 the son becomes one with 
the Father. The small letter i symbolizes the person- 
ality before its spiritual awakening, the self (perpen- 
dicular line) overshadowed by the Higher Self (the 

1 Individuality, that which is indivisible. Personality, literally to 
sound through; a vehicle; a mask. 



128 The Voice of I sis 

dot) who as yet cannot manifest on earth except as 
the germ of that which the lower self can reach up and 
merge into. The perpendicular line must reach up 
and merge into the dot before it can become the I. 

Even the materially minded recognize that the only 
path to worldly success is implicit faith and belief in 
yourself. This is but the lowest octave of the true 
success which results when you raise your belief from 
the personal self to the Real Self. The relative value 
of the Real Self and the personal self may be repre- 
sented by a capital I painted in gold upon a dark 
shadowy background designed to make the golden let- 
ter more conspicuous. The personality must always be 
the shadow on earth of the Real I, its office being to 
emphasize and give perfect expression to the Real Self 
and make its golden light stand out the more brilliantly 
because of the shadow. 

Manifested life is compared to the Great Bird (P&- 
ram-hansa), for just as a bird grows to maturity and 
lays an egg out of which hatches another bird, so the 
cycles of manifestation emerge from the World-Egg, 
mature and deposit their eggs (lay a centers) out of 
which new manifestations (manvantaras) of activity 
emerge. The winged globe and the winged wheel have 
the same symbology, namely, that Time is fleeting but 
is forever progressing. This symbol is often called the 
Winged Eternity, eternity only in its eternal renewal 
of manifestation. The Bird of Life called Kalahamsa 
or Black Swan — black because unmanifested — symbol- 
izes the Higher or Divine Self, the "I AM THAT I 
AM." Hence, to "bestride the Bird of Life" means 
to be master of all the manifesting expressions through 
which this great bird or winged wheel is passing, just 
as a rider must control and master his fiery steed. Our 
text therefore points out the possibility of such mas- 



The Self 129 

tery and the only way by which it can be attained, i. e., 
by an understanding of the Self, merging the person- 
ality into the Individuality over the straight line of 
your awakened spiritual consciousness. 

To accomplish this think of yourself as one with the 
Silent Thinker, the Great Over-Soul, the Self, the 
Bringer-Forth of all things, and swallow up the little 
personal self in this greater conception of Selfhood. 
Always think of the Real Self as an emanation from 
or an expression of the Divine, of which you, the per- 
sonal self, are but the shadow. While you should 
make the personal self a perfect shadow or reflection 
of the Divine, still even after that is accomplished it 
must take its proper place as the humble servant of 
the Self. If you make a sincere effort to do this, how 
much of misery, of unhappiness, of trouble will fall 
away from your life ! As we have said in another 
work, "O ye seekers for the Way ! . . . To you 
comes a message from all the spheres through which 
the Spirit of Life Eternal presses onward pulsating, 
rising, falling, beating the outward form into noth- 
ingness, that the immortal Spirit of all things may 
be revealed to you, the Soundless Sound." x What 
does this mean, this "beating into nothingness?" What 
is this "outer form?" It is the personality, your life 
in the outer world. But must all these things, my 
business, my pleasures, my friendships be beaten into 
nothingness? Yes, if they so completely occupy your 
attention that they prevent the Real Self from mani- 
festing. For once you have set out upon the Path to 
Mastery, once having chosen to live the Higher Life, 
you have registered your desire and your willingness 
to let that Self manifest and all the forces of the uni- 
verse work together to fulfill your vow. Therefore, 

1 Tht Soundless Sound, Curtiss, p. 9. 



130 The Voice of I sis 

be not amazed at anything that happens to the little 
self, but instead ask Why? Why? 

That which holds you back is the personal self. Al- 
most every trouble that confronts you is centered in 
this little self and what others think of that self. Per- 
haps you are so humble that you think constantly of 
how little you are and dwell upon it so that it is im- 
possible for the Silent Thinker to inspire you, per- 
haps to do a great work. Perhaps you magnify every 
little deviation from that conduct which you have de- 
cided makes for spiritual growth. Perhaps, instead of 
keeping your mind on your Higher Self, you are watch- 
ing to see what others think of your beliefs, striving 
to shape your life to meet their approval or trying to 
live up to what others consider a spiritual life instead 
of listening to the Silent Speaker and following your 
own divine guidance. Perhaps you are following some 
great ambition, trying to accomplish some great thing 
for humanity. Perhaps some slight to the little self 
occupies your whole attention, perhaps some grief. 
There may be many seemingly laudable excuses given 
for allowing the little self to occupy the center of 
the stage in your life, but whatever they are, if you 
are honest with yourself, true and serious in your de- 
sire to be united to the mind of the Silent Thinker, you 
must admit that it is self that is occupying your at- 
tention and bringing about your troubles. This is 
comparable to the ignorance of the illiterate person 
who uses a small letter i where a capital I is indicated, 
for the little i is always subordinate and should never 
stand alone. You would not long fret or worry if, 
instead of focusing your attention upon the little self, 
its needs, its joys, its sorrows, its slights or perhaps 
its honors, you permitted it to be swallowed up in an 
effort to realize your Divine Self, to think of the per- 



The Self 131 

sonal self only as a vehicle or expression or shadowy 
background on the physical-plane, of the Great Self, 
the Higher Self. 

Many dream of a grand work for humanity, but 
the little self sets boundaries upon it or decides what 
the work is to be, thus allowing many opportunities 
to go by while waiting for what they have decided is 
to mark the beginning of their great work. While 
the great work which each Soul has to accomplish is 
born from the Higher Self it must be accomplished 
through the little self or personality. Hence the events 
which mark its beginning will be just those which the 
little self can accomplish and by such accomplishments 
grow into greater things. To sit with folded hands 
for a miraculous beginning is just as disastrous as to 
try to use a capital I where the small i is needed. Again 
it must borne in mind that the work of each self will 
be brought to that personality by the Great Law, and 
that it will never be another's work. 

Each personality is in very truth a ray from its 
Higher Self but in passing through earth conditions it 
has become clouded, obscured, distorted, just as a ray 
of light becomes distorted by passing through a dense 
medium. Therefore no person should try to pattern 
his life after that of another or after another's ideals, 
but after the ideal life of the Soul as set forth in the 
allegorical life of the Christ-man, Jesus. 

He should take account of his own disposition and 
idiosyncracies and seek to find the original intent of 
each characteristic or the germ of good within every 
fault. For this reason "know thyself" is the watchword 
rather than to pattern after another, be that other ever 
so godlike. For in the Grand Plan, while all are one in 
the unity of the godhead, still each atom or personality 
has its own part to play and is endowed with tendencies 



132 The Voice of I sis 

and characteristics which when corrected and sublimed 
will fit it to take its own place, a place no other can 
ever fill. Since your personality is the distorted image 
of your Higher Self it should be your first duty to 
straighten it out and discard the awryness due to the 
illusiveness of the medium through which it is function- 
ing and permit it truly to express the Real Self. The 
important point to remember therefore is not to copy 
the actions of others or try to square your life with 
the ideals of others, but bravely seek deep within your 
own being for the germs of action implanted in the 
personality by the Higher Self and make the person- 
ality measure up to the ideal given you by your own 
Higher Self. In other words find yourself, do your 
own thinking and live true to your own divine guid- 
ance. 

We are wont to consider selfish those who desire only 
happiness for the self or who refuse to let others have 
what they desire. We think ourselves very unselfish if, 
perchance, we strive to appear meek, seem humble, 
eager to talk about our littleness and the greatness of 
others and to prefer others to ourselves. But the truth 
is — and would we could speak it in tones that would 
vibrate from pole to pole — that it is just as selfish to 
permit your humility to occupy the foreground in your 
thoughts and continually impose it upon the thoughts 
of others as to continually seek your own pleasure. 
For even though you are dwelling upon your own un- 
worthiness, nevertheless it is the little self that is occu- 
pying your attention. The little self is your servant 
and must be set to work in the vineyard of your life 
and not stand all day idle waiting for The Christ to 
come and give it work in the great vineyard of hu- 
manity. 

On the other hand, many teachers gain a consid- 
erable following by reiterating their own greatness, 



The Self 133 

sanctity and claims to holiness. They talk much of 
their wonderful experiences, their illumination and 
their Christ-like character, and followers like sheep 
flock to them. But if each Soul will do his or her own 
thinking such claims to sanctity will at once arouse 
suspicion, for all scriptures and occult authorities pro- 
claim in no uncertain way that "whosoever shall exalt 
himself shall be abased." The true teacher must have 
evolved beyond the little personal self and to some ex- 
tent merged his consciousness into the Divine, hence 
neither seeks nor permits adulation or worship for 
himself, but lets the Divine in him speak through his 
teachings. 

Let your deep, abiding aims, your aspirations, be 
ever upward. In fact, bestride the Bird of Life and 
soar into heavenly realms. Forget to look down to 
earth. If you stumble, do not waste a moment's 
thought over it, but remember the lesson from it and 
say : "I must be up and doing. That is past and gone 
and it shall not hold me back." Truly nothing can 
hold you back unless you hold to it. If the Bird of 
Life is chained to a perch it cannot fly. "It warbles not, 
nor can it stir a feather; but the songster mute and 
torpid sits, and of exhaustion dies." If you were 
running a race and tripped and fell, would you waste 
time carefully inspecting the spot where you fell and 
wondering how it happened? No! you would be up 
and on, intent only on reaching the goal, not even 
conscious of the bruises you have received. Thus must 
you run this race which ends in Mastery. Be so intent 
on climbing the mountain that you have no time to 
think of your hurt feelings, no time to sit and cry, no 
time to enumerate either your personal grievances and 
slights, or your honors and exaltations, no time to 
grieve over lack of appreciation of your efforts by 
those around you. 



134 The Voice of I sis 

While you are not to go over and over in your mind 
the thing's belonging to the little personal self, still 
you must not waste your opportunities. Do your full 
duty in life, be kind, loving, just and true, yet always 
have your gaze fixed on high, and on the realization of 
your oneness with the Real Self like a thread of fire 
forever penetrating your being and rilling your con- 
sciousness. The little self continually seeks to sit upon 
the throne of the Higher Self, and when you think 
you have made it the servant in regard to earthly 
things, it begins to assert itself on the higher planes 
as spiritual selfishness and spiritual pride. 

Determine that you will not remain identified with 
the servant (the personality) but will identify yourself 
with the Master (the Higher Self). 

This life is but one day in the school of the Soul. 
Your real life is not at school but at home in your 
Father's house. If things in school do not go just 
as you would have them, nevertheless realize that 
everything that belongs to you or is a part of your 
Soul is yours upon the Soul-plane. There are many 
expressions of the Soul and these expressions may 
manifest in absolutely different ways upon the diff- 
erent planes. That which belongs to you is yours upon 
the Soul-plane, therefore accept it upon the Soul- 
plane, but do not insist upon its physical expression 
also until the Great Law brings it to you, for its physi- 
cal expression may not be for the personal self during 
this day at school. And if it does not belong to the 
personal self, why pin the Self down to the little self 
which, while learning its lessons in school must have 
many of its beautiful possessions kept from it until 
study hours are over? You only prolong the depri- 
vation by refusing to pay attention to your lessons. 
For you thereby attract earthly atoms which do not 



The Self 135 

belong to the Real Self and which must be taken from 
you, making the little self bleed and suffer. You are 
like a ship which, while in the ocean, even if blown 
temporarily from its course, is still victor over cur- 
rents, winds, tides and storms. But if this same 
ship anchors for a time in ever so beautiful a harbor 
it will become covered with barnacles, things that do 
not belong to it. And the longer it lies there the 
greater the encrustation. The only way it can be set 
free is to have the barnacles scraped off — a painful 
process. Try to understand and realize that any- 
thing you cling to for the mere gratification of the 
personal self, no matter how desirable it may seem, is 
but a barnacle holding back your spiritual advance. 
Your Higher Self has now everything necessary for 
its perfection and will and must scrape off the bar- 
nacles ere it can indraw the little self into its own Di- 
vine Consciousness and perfection. Dwell then in the 
Higher Self which does not need the physical expres- 
sions you desire but has the Reality in the oneness of 
the immortal Soul of All, forever in the Godhead. 

One of the greatest temptations of those who are 
progressing and beginning to develop the higher con- 
sciousness is to think that they have reached the point 
where the divinj illumination of conscious oneness with 
the Higher Self is soon to take place. So instead of 
merging their consciousness into the Divine they de- 
velop a great spiritual ambition for the little self to 
have an experience which shall lift them above their 
fellows and give them prestige. This is one of the 
most subtle temptations of the little self which must 
be carefully guarded against. 

You can carry the burdens of the little self only 
along the first steps on the Path. Long ere you enter 
the Fourth Gate 1 you must have left them behind. 

^"STe Chapter XXII. 



136 The Voice of I sis 

Like Christian in Pilgrim's Progress, you must find 
them falling from your shoulders into the abyss and 
be able to let them go without a murmur. The abyss 
is the only place for that of the lower self which can- 
not be swallowed up, digested, transmuted and per- 
mitted to manifest under and within the great Divine 
Self. Tear from your eyes the bandages of darkness 
and ignorance! why will you suffer so long? why put 
between you and all the loving Great Souls who are 
anxious to help you such a barrier, such a tremendous 
barrier as this lower self and its petty concerns? 

The Spirit within you is immortal, Divine. The 
Soul of you is part of the Soul of the Heavenly Man, 
and you owe it to your own Soul to work with all 
your powers for humanity. This you cannot do 
while your horizon is filled with the little self, while 
you remember that you are a separate entity or any- 
thing but an expression of your true Higher Self who 
is one with Divinity. The Real Self, being one with 
all, is concerned only that the personal self learn the 
lessons necessary to bring it into conscious at-one- 
ment with the Divine, hence refuses to be turned aside 
from its purpose by the little trials and tests the per- 
sonal self has to pass through. It sees only the great 
end, only the Divine Power working through the little 
selves and leading humanity up to the Divine. The 
self must become the True Self, the Higher Self. 



CHAPTER X. 

THE DOCTRINE OF AVATARA. 

"And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward 
is with me, to give every man according as his 
work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the be- 
ginning and the ead, the first and the last."— 
Revelation XXII, 12-13. 

The Order of the 15 was put forth by the Great 
White Lodge for a definite work in helping to pre- 
pare the way and make a place for the coming of the 
great World Teacher, the Avatar. For ere such a 
Divine Being can appear on earth there must be a 
nucleus formed of awakened Souls who not only 
ardently long for His advent, but who are sufficiently 
instructed in the Law and developed through love, 
to recognize Him when He comes. The time has 
now come to give to our pupils such further infor- 
mation concerning this great event as the times permit. 

"What is an Avatar ? for the term being used ought 
to be well understood. It is a descent of the manifested 
Deity, . . . into an illusive form of individual- 
ity, an appearance which to men on this illusive plane 
is objective, but it is not so in sober fact. That illu- 
sive form having neither past nor future, because it 
had neither previous incarnation nor will have sub- 
sequent rebirths, has naught to do with Karma, which 
has therefore no hold on it." 1 In other words a true 
Avatar is a focusing of the universal cosmic Christ- 
principle into and through the individuality of a Great 
Soul who has reached divinity — hence has no Karma. 
Such a Great Soul must be an Initiate into the Mys- 
teries, one who has overcome and reached nirvanic 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. Ill, 364. 



138 The Voice of I sis 

bliss, but who voluntarily incarnates in the flesh for 
the purpose of becoming a vehicle for an individual- 
ization of The Christos, that it may accomplish a spe- 
cial definite mission in humanity. Such an one sac- 
rifices His life in the spiritual realms and offers Him- 
self as a vehicle because of His great love for suf- 
fering- humanity and in answer to its great need for a 
more direct manifestation of Divine Love and Wisdom. 
The whole doctrine of Avatara is so hedged about 
with mysteries whose elucidation belongs to the higher 
initiations, that only a more or less imperfect out- 
line can be given here. Generally speaking, however, 
an Avatar is not a mortal, but a Divine Being, who 
descends from the spiritual realms and suddenly ap- 
pears on earth in a body composed of atoms which 
vibrate to the rhythm of the spiritual-plane and hence 
are immortal. The Ophites and Nazarenes taught 
that, "Therefore, Christos, the perfect, 1 uniting him- 
self with Sophia (divine wisdom) descended through 
the seven planetary regions, assuming in each an anal- 
ogous form . . . (and) entered into the man 
Jesus at the moment of his baptism in the Jordan. 2 
From this time forth Jesus began to work miracles ; 
before that time he had been entirely ignorant of his 
own mission." 3 This is the true interpretation of the 
symbol in which Jesus is said to be born of a virgin, 
i. e., he descended from the great Celestial Virgin, 
Sophia, as a direct Avatar. From the life of Jesus 

1 "The Western personification of that power, which the Hindu* 
call the Vija, the 'one seed' or Maha-Vishnu — a power not the God — 
or that mysterious Principle that contains in Itself the Seed of Ava- 
tarism." 

* "The Baptism in the Jordan is the Rite of Initiation, the final 
purification, whether in sacred pagoda, tank, river, or temple lake 
in Egypt or Mexico. The perfect Christos and Sophia . . . enter 
the Initiate at the moment of the mystic rite, by transference from 
Guru to Chela, and leave the physical body, at the moment of the 
death of the latter, to re-enter the Nirmanakaya, or the astral Ego 
of Adept."— Ibid, Vol. III., p. 159. 

•IbU, Vol. Ill, p. 158. 



The Doctrine of Avatara 139 

as given in the Bible it may be inferred that he was 
not a direct Avatar, having been born of woman. 
Nevertheless He was a direct Avatar, for that story 
is not a history of His physical life, but an allegorical 
account of the Soul-life of every great Initiate. 

As above indicated, The Christos becomes individ- 
ualized upon all planes, beginning with the highest 
spiritual-plane and gradually descending to earth. In 
the case of the coming Avatar this individualization 
has already reached the higher astral-plane, the next 
above the earth-plane. 

When the mission of an Avatar requires an appear- 
ance upon the physical-plane His spiritual body re- 
sponds to His will, lowers its rate of vibration to the 
key-note of the physical-plane (somewhat similar to 
the way steam can be condensed into ice), and He 
appears among men in a body to all intents physical, 
"an appearance which to men, on this illusive plane, is 
objective, but is not so in sober fact," in that it is 
not a mortal body confined to the physical-plane and 
subject to death and decay. Such a divine Being is 
not born of woman, but simply appears in a body 
far more glorious, sensitive and powerful than any 
mortal body could be. Such a body can manifest upon 
any plane of consciousness in response to the will of 
its possessor. Since such a Great Soul is one with His 
Father-in-heaven He has all knowledge and all wisdom, 
hence would require no earthly instruction or school- 
ing, for His consciousness would be one with The 
Christ-consciousness, hence all-knowing. 

His manifested personality would transcend all ra- 
cial characteristics and limitations; would be the type 
of perfected man. Hence He could not be pointed 
out as belonging to a particular Race, but would em- 
body the perfections of all Races and therefore would 



140 The Voice of I sis 

not arouse the race-prejudice of even the most ad- 
vanced. 

The appearance of an Avatar is determined by the 
needs of humanity and the manifestation is as great 
as the highest ideals of the most advanced of mankind 
demand. He comes in answer to the cry of many, many 
hearts for more love and light, for higher ideals and 
for a clearer understanding of the universal spiritual 
truths contained in the one Wisdom Religion. As 
more and more hearts send up their cries the demand 
creates a vacuum or a negative vortex into which the 
positive complementary force of The Christ-principle 
must flow and find an embodied manifestation in hu- 
manity. In The Bhagavad Gita 1 Krishna — the Christ — 
says : "I produce myself among creatures, O son 
of Bharata, whenever there is a decline of virtue and 
an insurrection of vice and injustice in the world; and 
thus I incarnate from age to age for the preservation 
of the just, the destruction of the wicked, and the es- 
tablishment of righteousness." This law is illustrated 
by the popular saying, "The darkest hour is just be- 
fore the dawn." Therefore, when we find that hu- 
manity has reached a point of great spiritual, mental 
and social unrest, during which the established and 
recognized spiritual teachers have gotten so far away 
from their true spiritual guidance that the great mass 
of humanity are like sheep without a shepherd, and 
are sending out their heart-cries without ceasing, 
What is Truth? Who shall show us the Way? "How 
long, O Lord, how long?" this cry must bring forth 
its answer. In other words, when the enlightened 
thought of the day recognizes — as it does today — that 
its spiritual teachers are no longer in personal touch 
with the higher realms and are no longer divinely 

1 Chapter IV. 



The Doctrine of Avatara 141 

called, guided and appointed to their offices, a new 
regime is demanded. When the ceremonies employed 
and the sacraments administered by priests and min- 
isters no longer carry divine potency, it is time for a 
true priesthood to be established. When the covenant 
of marriage is no longer a sacred sacrament, but has 
degenerated into the mere recital of a few words be- 
fore one who has no spiritual power to discern whether 
or not the man and woman belong to each other spirit- 
ually — as all divinely ordained priests have — and when 
through such ignorance the resulting mistaken mar- 
riages degrade the Divine Creative Power into mere 
sex gratification, impurity and lust, then there must 
come a fresh outpouring of Divine Love, Purity and 
Wisdom. \_For there is never a sincere prayer uttered 
by the childrerToFmen that does not, by the very law 
of the universe, create its answer. Neither social, po- 
litical nor economic injustice and inharmony can ever 
be truly adjusted and regulated and graft abolished 
until the divinely appointed priesthood, who are un- 
der personal conscious direction of the Progenitors 
and Guides of the Race, is re-established. The ques- 
tion of the marriage sacrament alone demands a di- 
vinely appointed and trained body of spiritual teach- 
ers — a true priesthood — who have the power to know 
who should partake of that sacrament together and 
who should not. If there were no other need in hu- 
manity for an Avatar this alone would be sufficient to 
call one into manifestation, that a new order of true 
priests of the Lord or the Divine Law might be es- 
tablished. But there are many other crying needs ex- 
pressed in present-day social, economic and political 
conditions, as well as the awakening of many, many 
hearts to the need of more direct spiritual teach- 
ings. Hence all the signs of the times point to the 



142 The Voice of his 

necessity for a fresh outpouring of Divine Love and 
Wisdom in this present age. 

As the Avatar descends through the higher worlds 
and draws near the earth-plane, all hearts who are 
open to His influence or respond to the key-note of 
His message come into more or less conscious touch 
with Him interiorly through the illuminating power 
of His Divine consciousness and feel an unquenchable 
desire and an irresistible urge to purify, uplift and 
make more harmonious that phase of work for hu- 
manity in which they are interested. And today all 
classes, types and conditions of mind are feeling the 
influence of a great spiritual awakening which is giv- 
ing them a greater vision, a greater realization of the 
needs of humanity and the possibility of their filling a 
wider range of usefulness and accomplishing greater 
results. And this no matter whether they are more 
or less blindly following the urge to do good along 
philanthropic, humanitarian, sociological or political 
lines of endeavor, or whether they are occultists who 
understand the Law and are working more or less 
consciously under the inspiration and direction of 
those Great Souls, the Masters of Wisdom, whose 
Love, Wisdom and Power is back of and working 
through every effort for the betterment of the Race 
in direct proportion to the ability of the various chan- 
nels to assimilate and make use of Their help. 

An Avatar then is the focusing and embodiment 
of the same Christ-principle that has manifested in all 
ages in all Avatars, each of whom thus became The 
Christ for the age in which He appeared. Each direct 
descent of Deity into physical embodiment, however, 
is preceded by many lesser and incomplete manifesta- 
tions called Avesha Avatars. In these cases an ad- 
vanced Soul who has not yet reached full Mastery, but 



The Doctrine of Avatara 143 

who is sufficiently pure, loving and compassionate, is 
chosen and overshadowed by The Christ-principle for 
a certain time and for a certain purpose. In every 
organization, society, order or movement working 
along truly spiritual, occult or mystic lines, there will 
be certain advanced members who will be able to 
reach up into the spiritual realm and come into con- 
scious communion with the Avatar. From these ad- 
vanced Souls one who is especially pure, gifted, well- 
trained and worthy, will be chosen as the mouthpiece 
through whom the message of the Avatar will be given 
out to his particular society or movement. It is nec- 
essary, however, that this vehicle be capable of re- 
ceiving and transmitting as much of the Divine Wis- 
dom, in its purity, as the stage of evolution and de- 
gree of spiritualization of his bodies is capable of ex- 
pressing. Hence such a vehicle must be carefully 
trained, disciplined and prepared that his faculties and 
powers may reach their greatest perfection. In each 
case the chosen one is a Christ only during the period 
of the overshadowing, at all other times being but the 
human and mortal personage. Not that there is any 
limit to possible revelation, for the overshadowing is 
always The Christos which is not a being, but that 
Essence of Divinity which is Everlasting Law, Ever- 
lasting Wisdom, the Essence of Truth from the begin- 
ning, from everlasting to everlasting. Jesus speaks 
of this overshadowing Power as "the Comforter" and 
tells His disciples that it is expedient for Him to go 
away that the Comforter might come. This simply 
means that, being the Avatar, He condensed or focused 
The Christos in Himself which at His departure would 
be perceived by mankind apart from its manifestations 
through His personality and shine in every heart pre- 
pared to correlate with it. "But the Comforter, which 



144 The Voice of I sis 

is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my 
name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things 
to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto 
you." 

In other words each truly spiritual, pure and sincere 
society and movement will have some illumined Soul 
who will be an Avesha Avatar to that society or move- 
ment to prepare his followers for the coming of the 
Avatar, as John the Baptist prepared the Hebrews 
for the coming of Jesus. No doubt in many instances 
such an Avesha Avatar will be considered by his fol- 
lowers to be the Avatar in person. But this is easily 
determined if you remember that an Avatar is not a 
mortal. When such a claim 1 is made for any human 
being, however great or wise, you may know that he 
could not be more than an Avesha Avatar and be 
mortal. Nevertheless the essence of his message 
would be that of the Avatar, for water is still water 
whether measured by a thimbleful or by an ocean. 
Furthermore, if he be a pure and enlightened Avesha, 
he will not only refuse the title of Avatar, but will 
exclaim with John the Baptist: "One mightier than I 
cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to 
unloose." He will also discountenance all adulation and 
personal worship. The characteristics of his teach- 
ings will include not only the much abused "uni- 
versal brotherhood" but also the true tolerance that 
arises from a recognition of the divine guidance of 
other teachers and Aveshas. For one evidence of a 
true Avesha must be a recognition of the divine mis- 
sion of others. 

Necessarily the messages of the various Avesha 
Avataras will differ in details, methods of presenta- 
tion, etc., for the ability of such a channel to give 
out the teaching depends upon such factors as the 



The Doctrine of Avatar a 145 

line of endeavor he is interested in, his race-thought, 
his mental and spiritual capacity, his habits of life, 
his knowledge of the laws and philosophy of the 
higher life and the intellectual training his mind — 
through which all the teachings must pass — has re- 
ceived. In this way the members of every Society and 
movement shall hear the divine truths spoken in their 
own language wherein they were born, i. e., couched 
in the terminology, symbols and characteristic methods 
of expression peculiar to their own avenue of truth. 
Thus all classes of humanity will be given the oppor- 
tunity to do their part in preparing for the coming 
of the Great One by forming an universal Center in 
which He can manifest. This does not necessarily 
mean a Center in the sense of a segregated commu- 
nity, but an universal Center in the thought-world 
from which the currents of force will radiate that 
shall affect the minds and hearts of the whole 
world. Each Avesha Avatara will no doubt found 
a community for his own followers and out of 
each community there must ultimately be chosen 
those advanced disciples who have been able to 
recognize The Christ "in the air" or on the higher 
planes and hence are able to recognize Him when He 
manifests in the flesh. These will be gathered together 
to be His immediate disciples and body-guard. The 
Avatar will not come to any one society, movement, 
order or sect, but will come to humanity. His truths 
will be so divine and perfect, yet so simple, unbiased 
and unprejudiced by the characteristics of any cult, 
that they will be equally applicable to all, no matter 
what their Race, creed or special trend of thought 
may be. 

We have in the Gospel of St. John, in language so 
simple as to be a complete and incomprehensible blind 



146 The Voice of I sis 

to all but the initiated, the whole doctrine of the Ava- 
tara. We read : "In the beginning was the Word (The 
Christos) and the Word was with God, and the Word 
was God," God in that it was and is the totality of 
Spiritual Wisdom, the creative Word, the manifested 
Christ. "The same was in the beginning with God. 
All things were made by him; ... In him was 
life; and the life was the light of men." The Christ- 
principle is the essence of Divine Life without which 
there can be no life, and being Divine this life is "the 
light of men" and is distinct from mere animal life 
which is but the outward and densest covering of Di- 
vine Essence. "And the light shineth in the darkness ; 
and the darkness comprehended it not," i. e., it is hid- 
den in a human body. These verses also bear testimony 
that this Light of the Christos is once more to be man- 
ifested in humanity as it has been manifested periodi- 
cally "from the beginning." This is but another and 
more compact statement of a deep esoteric truth, and 
a most sacred mystery, which has filled volume after 
volume in more ancient scriptures. 

In all religions now on earth there is an exoteric 
or public and an inner or secret teaching. Something 
analogous is true of the manifested Christos ; it has its 
exoteric manifestations and its inner Essence. Here- 
tofore, in every manifestation of an Avatar, it has 
been the outer covering, as it were, of this Power that 
has manifested through the vehicle ; and even this has 
been more than humanity could grasp or understand. 
In the coming Avatar will be manifested more of the 
inner Essence of The Christ than has ever before been 
possible, because thousands in the world today are 
shaking off the garments of their dense materialized 
conceptions of life and are responding to the higher 
spiritual ideals. 



The Doctrine of Avatara 147 

Every Great Teacher, such as Zoroaster, Gautama, 
Jesus, etc., has founded a new religion or at most, 
a new expression of the One Religion. They have 
all taught the Wisdom Religion, but in ways which 
appealed to the different peoples to which they came. 
While each of those Great Teachers has taken the 
world a step onward and emphasized some one phase 
of Divine Truth, still they have founded but larger 
sects, rather than brought the world into one Univer- 
sal Brotherhood. The Christian religion is universally 
acknowledged to be the greatest factor in modern 
civilization, and the time has now come for it to take 
an advanced step through the awakening of a sense 
of the deep, underlying, vital truths common to all 
religions in the hearts of all earnest seekers among 
Christian people; thus taking the first step on the 
return journey to the one Wisdom Religion. 

There are many prophecies in the Bible, and else- 
where, relating to the Avatar who closes this cycle, 
which have never been fulfilled in any sense. The Book 
of Revelation is distinctly a history of the preparation 
for the coming of such an Avatar. In it is allegori- 
cally set forth all that must occur in the world dur- 
ing an avataric cycle. A careful study of this book 
will prove that it contains teachings identical with 
the above, as well as with those of all ancient revela- 
tions pertaining to the Mysteries. This will easily be 
understood if the student will remember that the 
Bible covers the whole period of an avataric cycle, i. e., 
from the first coming to the reappearance of the Avatar 
at the close of the cycle. Jesus, speaking of The Christ- 
principle within Him, said, "I am Alpha and Omega, 
the beginning and the ending, . . . which is, and 
which was, and which is to come, the Almighty," 1 a 

1 Revelation, I, 8. 



148 The Voice of I sis 

most blasphemous assertion if referring to His human 
personality. This emphasizes the fact that it was not 
the man Jesus, but The Christos that manifested, and 
that it was the same Power in all ages and in all mani- 
festations, and that the same Divine Power which 
manifested through the personality called Jesus will be 
the Power to manifest through the Avatar who closes 
this Messianic cycle and plants the seed for the new. 
But instead of this return being merely the founding 
of new religion or sect, — humanity, having passed the 
lowest point of the downward arc of the cycle and 
begun laboriously to climb the upward arc — the com- 
ing Avatar must fulfill the prophecies already given, 
bring to earth as much of the Divine Wisdom as hu- 
manity can attain to by the end of the sixth and sev- 
enth sub-races, and plant the seed for the future Sixth 
Great Race, whose manifestation will usher in the 
Golden Age. 

The time of His coming cannot be given out ; but it 
will be in exact accord with the astronomical and 
numerical cycles hinted at elsewhere. Moreover, all 
who will be drawn into the coming Brotherhood will 
find that they are in some mysterious way connected 
with the secret cycles of the Messiah. The Avatar 
cannot come until the cycle is fulfilled; until the stars 
are in their proper positions. As we said in a former 
lesson : 

"It is a fact that the creative force flows in cyclic 
waves, and in a cycle corresponding closely to a cen- 
tury of earth life. The ebb and flow of this great 
force is first downward. The first quarter of the 
century it passes from the spiritual world into the 
mental and psychic; the second quarter down into the 
physical, and then, in the last half of the century, back 
again into the spiritual-plane, following the reverse 



The Doctrine of Avatara 149 

order. But the deductions that have been drawn from 
these facts by some, are arbitrary and misleading. 

"As the force descends from the spiritual-plane 
into the psychic in the first quarter of the century (1 to 
25), it causes great creative activity in the psychic and 
mental worlds, and the Masters take advantage of 
this fact to work with the tide. Consequently all 
those who have developed their faculties so they can 
reach the higher psychic-plane can meet the Masters 
upon that plane (not upon the astral) and can benefit 
correspondingly by the great activity of that period. 

"Later, during the second quarter of the century (25 
to 50), the force descends into the physical world and 
touches the lowest point of its arc; but it is still spir- 
itual creative force. The natural deduction from this 
is, therefore, that the first quarter of the century (1 to 
25) is, most emphatically, the planting and growing 
time, corresponding to the springtime of the year. It 
would be during this quarter of the century that an 
Avatar would first manifest Himself to His more ad- 
vanced disciples and plant in their hearts the seed of 
His teachings. 

"The second quarter of the century (25 to 50) cor- 
responds to summer ; the time when this spiritual crea- 
tive force, having penetrated to the earth-plane, must 
bring forth its fruit upon that plane. Whatever has 
been planted must bring forth its fruit,, provided it 
has been a fruitful season ; that is, providing the work 
has been faithfully done and the spring growth care- 
fully nurtured. Should this part of the cycle of the 
century coincide with certain greater cycles, it would 
be possible at this period for the Avatar to manifest 
openly among men, He being the fruit of the culmin- 
ating cycles. The Master Jesus was spoken of as "The 
first fruits of them that slept,' the word 'slept' in- 



150 The Voice of I sis 

dicating not in manifestation. Should the Avatar come, 
the result of His teachings, and His contact with the 
earth would mature during this period. At the end 
of this quarter of the century the force, having reached 
its lowest point, would turn upward, and His teach- 
ings would raise humanity with it. 

"The third quarter (50 to 75) corresponds to the 
autumn when the fruit is harvested ; when 'we which 
are alive and remain shall be caught up together with 
them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air ; and 
so shall we be ever with the Lord.' " 

"The last quarter (75 to 100) corresponds to the 
winter time, when the ground is frozen. At that time, 
after the harvest has been gathered and the spiritual 
forces indrawn and the world has again fallen away 
from' the true teachings, it becomes necessary for The 
Lodge of Masters again to send out an agent, or 
agents, on the physical-plane, to break the ground and 
prepare for the new springtime. At such a time much 
of the activity of The Lodge is directed to the physical- 
plane through physical embodiments. 
. . . . "Consequently these early years of the 
century are pregnant with power. As the years go 
on this Great Creative Force of Love must be brought 
down to earth by those who can receive it; for only 
as we are able to reach up into the higher psychic 
realm, and there meet and correlate with the Great 
Teachers, is it possible to prepare for the coming to 
earth of the Fruit, or the embodied power of The 
Christ-force, in the person of the Avatar whose com- 
ing the culminating of many cycles now makes pos- 
sible. 'And then shall appear the sign of the Son of 
Man in heaven.' x Already the Watchers have seen 
The Christ-star — the star that has announced to all 

1 St. Matthew XXIV, 20. 



The Doctrine of Avatara 151 

wise men, in all ages, the appearance of an Avatar. 
Consequently we believe that the Avatar will soon 
come, not in a physical body born of woman, but 
in a more ethereal or spiritual body, capable, never- 
theless, of appearing objectively as a physical body as 
occasion demands. 

"Instead of this being a time to sit down and con 
old lessons, it is time to be up and doing; but on lines 
altogether different from those suitable to the period 
of the breaking of the ground and the sowing of the 
seed. This is why The Order of the 15 is now put 
forth ; to enable all who are ready, to grow to the point 
where they can, through special instruction, come into 
personal touch with the Masters and the Avatar." 

"It is asserted by many advanced thinkers that the 
present wave of pyschic unrest is a sign of the near 
advent of the Avatar, and that a widespread develop- 
ment of psychic faculties will usher in His coming. 
This is, indeed, a sign of the coming; but it is not 
strictly correct to say that it will be the character- 
istic; for, although there will be a period of great 
psychic activity (not, however, due to new senses, 
but to the use of the present faculties upon the inner 
planes) it will but serve to prove that mere psychic 
development is not the end to be desired. 'Behold, 
the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send 
a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a 
thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the 
Lord: And they shall wander from sea to sea, and 
from north even to the east, they shall run to and fro 
to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it.' 1 
The spiritual understanding of the people shall be 
darkened and they shall wander from sea to sea seek- 
ing th e word of the Lord. Today many are running 

1 Concerning Various Misconceptions, Now out sf print. 



152 The Voice of his 

to and fro after self-advertised teachers, seeking to 
develop their psychic faculties. And many who have 
begun to use these faculties on even the lowest stratum 
of the astral-plane set themselves up as teachers or 
write books giving the world minute directions cov- 
ering the whole field of thought and action, from 
the feeding of their animal bodies to the attainment of 
Adeptship. With the fragments of knowledge thus 
obtained such teachers claim that every other psychic 
who has gleaned a few different fragments is wrong. 
This psychic awakening, conflict and confusion will 
come as the first step in a wonderful wave of activity 
in all walks of life, tending to extreme selfishness and 
unbrotherliness ; for each will claim the Truth and 
start sect after sect, and, like a pack of wolves tear- 
ing a carcass in pieces, each one will be ready to fight 
to the death to maintain and guard his bone against 
the whole pack. Then shall begin 'wars and rumours 
of wars' and the struggle for supremacy. 'Now the 
brother shall betray the brother to death, and the 
father the son ; and children shall rise up against 
their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.' 1 
This will be but the beginning of the end; and the 
prospect would be hopeless, indeed, did we not know 
that out of those who 'run to and fro,' one bv one 
there will come the few who will open their spiritual 
faculties, sweep away the mists of prejudice, and see 
the Light of The Christos shining in their brother's 
heart. These few will band together to help spread 
the Light rather than to increase the confusion; and 
they will be the remnant who will survive the physical 
catastrophes and usher in the golden period of the 
present Kali Yuga age. These will not seek the King- 
dom through psychic development, but, through the 

*St. Mark XIII 12. 



The Doctrine of Avatara 153 

awakening of their love and compassion, they will 
find The Christ-light illumining their hearts and 
opening all the psychic doors normally and without 
effort. These will be the 144,000 who will 'meet the 
Lord in the air,' i. e., in the higher spiritual-plane to 
which they can penetrate because of the love and com- 
passion developed. Only when The Christ-love has 
manifested and has thus awakened the hearts of a con- 
siderable number of disciples can a center be formed 
in which this power can be focused and individualized 
in the person of the coming Avatar." x 

When the birth of Jesus was announced, it was 
only after a particular Angel had announced The 
Christ that the angelic hosts of heaven joined in the 
chorus. So today all who are faithfully guarding their 
flocks upon the mountain top will first hear the an- 
nouncement and then the response. 

The Order of the 15 is put forth in an effort to 
awaken The Christ-love in the hearts of men, rather 
than to cater to the intellect or the desire for psychic 
development. For only those who can correlate with 
this Christ-power can be gathered together as His disci- 
ples. The aim of this Movement is especially to help 
all Christian people to find the deep, underlying vital 
truths common to all religions in their own, and thus 
truly, and in the only way possible, prepare for an 
Universal Brotherhood on earth in which each Soul 
shall find the same vital truths spoken in his own 
language, i. e., couched and taught in terms of the 
religion in which he was born. 3 This is the only 
real way of bringing about Brotherhood. For to 
dream of a Brotherhood in which all classes of hu- 

1 Since the above was written (1908) many of the prophecies have 
been fulfilled, as even a superficial study of the signs of the times 
will show. 

2 See Acts II, 6. 



154 The Voice of I sis 

manity and all varieties of race-thought are forced to 
flow in one direction and accept as final Truth couched 
in one set form — no matter how lofty the form or 
how beautiful its trend — is but a fantastic chimera 
born of the human mind, and whose attempted prac- 
tical establishment has always ended, and always will 
end, in confusion, antagonism, and unbrotherliness 
far more intense than before the attempt was made. 
It is only by touching the deep, underlying springs of 
Universal Love that Universal Brotherhood can be 
attained. 'Therefore, we ask one and alL-to seek to 
develop The Christ-love in their hearts, rernernbering 
that only when it shows in their lives and makes 
them more Christ-like, can it be said to have germin- 
ated. A seed may lie dormant for ages, but the instant 
it opens its heart to the life of the sun it begins to 
grow. So it is with The Christ-seed. The Christ-light 
is in every man, but we can say the Christ-star has 
arisen only when it shines forth and illumines our 
daily life. The Christ-love is a consuming fire, and 
jill fire spreads. If the life remains cold and dark 
and selfish the Fire is not yet lit. This is the first step 
toward Universal Brotherhood, for when we find The 
Christ in our own hearts we seek for it in every other 
heart. / 



CHAPTER XI. 

A STUDY OF REINCARNATION OR REBIRTH. 

"He asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men 
say that I, the Son of man am? And they said, 
Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, 
Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the 
prophets."— St. Matthew, XVI. 13-14. 

When the old teaching of reincarnation was re- 
vived in the Western world, it was necessary to bring 
to bear all the powers of logic to prove its reasonability, 
and its ancient and world-wide acceptance. Today 
this truth has permeated all classes of society, filling 
the world's literature and furnishing the motif for 
many successful stage productions — thus proving that 
the public is eager for the subject. This itself is an evi- 
dence of rebirth, for what else can this widely re- 
newed interest in the subject be but a reincarnation of 
an ancient world-wide belief? For detailed proofs 
of its reasonability we refer the student to other 
authorities. 1 

Like many other things that are true and gener- 
ally accepted, proof that would convince all is out of 
the question, for what is proof to one is not to an- 
other. For instance, a spiritualist might say that, 
if he had lived before, something might be given him 
by discarnate entities about a former life that could 
be verified by historical records. This would be no 
proof at all, for it would be an easy matter for any 
discarnate entity capable of communicating, to secure 
the information from any records accessible to the 
invest igator. As far as absolute proof goes each one 

^Reincarnation, Walker. Reincarnation and the Law of Karma, 
Atkinson. Reincarnation, Anderson. 



156 The Voice of I sis 

must take this law as he takes many other laws — upon 
its reasonability. If it fails in this or in its ability 
to afford a rational explanation for the many discrep- 
ancies of life which are otherwise unexplainable, he 
is at liberty to reject it. But for those who do accept 
it we will make an effort to remove some of the mis- 
conceptions and clear up some of the vagaries which, 
like barnacles, have attached themselves to this truth. 

"Intimately, or rather indissolubly, connected with 
Karma, is the law of Re-birth, or of the reincarnation 
of the same spiritual Individuality in a long, almost 
interminable, series of Personalities. The latter are 
like the various characters played by the same actor, 
with each of which the actor identifies himself and is 
identified by the public, for the space of a few hours. 
The inner, or Real Man, who personates those char- 
acters, knows the whole time that he is Hamlet only 
for the brief space of a few acts, which, however, on 
the plane of human illusion, represent the whole life 
of Hamlet. He knows also that he was, the night be- 
fore, King Lear, the transformation in his turn of 
the Othello of a still earlier preceding night. And 
though the outer, visible character is supposed to be 
ignorant of the fact, and in actual life that ignorance is, 
unfortunately, but too real, nevertheless, the perma- 
nent Individuality is fully aware of it, and it is through 
the atrophy of the 'spiritual' Eye in the physical body, 
that that knowledge is unable to impress itself on the 
consciousness of the Personality." x 

When the physical body is left in the tomb the Soul 
is clothed in an astral 2 body and lives for a time upon 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II, p. 320. 

* Astral: A finer state of matter than the physical, the etheric; the 
next kingdom above the physical; the state between the intensest 
physical activity and the slowest mental activity; the region of the 
play of all feeling and desire of the human Soul, whether incarnate or 
excarnate; the state in which it becomes conscious on leaving the 
physical. 



A Study of Reincarnation or Rebirth 157 

the astral-plane, in the exact environment for which 
its development fits it. A period of time is passed in 
digesting and assimilating the lessons of the past life, 
in the reverse order of their acquirement, and in realiz- 
ing the inevitable trend of all its desires and actions 
while on earth. The progress made is in the growth 
and development of the seeds of good and evil sown 
during earth life. For this reason, unless reincarna- 
tion had been brought to one's attention upon earth, 
he would be very unlikely to know anything about it or 
come in contact with those who did, for there is nothing 
in his astral environment to suggest it any more than 
there was in his physical environment. After having 
passed through the various subdivisions of the astral 
world and passed on to higher states of conscious- 
ness, there comes a time in his evolution when, 
after a long period of rest — during which he has ex- 
hausted or experienced the spiritual bliss resulting 
from the realization of all his earthly ideals — he real- 
izes his limitations and chooses once more to clothe 
himself in flesh. He does this firstly, from a compre- 
hension of the great work of the redemption of human- 
ity and the globe which he has gained upon the higher 
planes and of the necessity of fitting himself, through 
further earthly experience, for his necessary part in 
that work; and secondly, because of a strong desire 
to help on the evolution of the Race, which evolu- 
tion can only be accomplished by the purified Soul 
clothing itself in fleshly atoms that it may train and 
purify them. The Soul realizes that its lack of ex- 
perience limits its usefulness, and a deliberate choice 
is made once more to function through a physical 
body. 

Being one with God the Soul has the power of 
choosing its path and its environments, subject to the 



158 The Voice of I sis 

Law of Karma, the one desire being to quickly fulfill 
the "cycle of necessity" and return to the Father's 
heart. Therefore it chooses an environment, not as a 
personality would choose — for wealth, ease or happi- 
ness, for it realizes that spiritual happiness must be 
born of earthly experience ; must be the giving up 
of self for the upliftment of all — but an environment 
which will give it the best opportunity to gain the ex- 
perience it lacks — the best environment that its Karma 
will permit. It naturally incarnates among its old 
associates unless, as sometimes happens, there is some 
Karma or needed lesson that takes it temporarily into a 
new set of associations (a side issue). This clothing 
itself in flesh involves the training of a new instrument 
(brain and body) which is not correlated with the 
memory of the Real Self, and thus the "why" is for- 
gotten, for otherwise the lessons would be no lessons 
at all. This experience of the Soul might roughly be 
compared to a person away on a pleasure trip in a 
foreign country where he suddenly realizes there is 
some task he has failed to perform ere leaving or 
that there is some loved one who needs his help, 
and he returns to take up the duty, even though the 
task be sordid and repulsive, and the loved one un- 
appreciative. There is no person, therefore, who can 
say that at the present time he is having his last in- 
carnation; for only when the Soul reaches the stage 
where it weighs itself in the balance and realizes that 
there still lacks something of earth's experience to fit 
it to take its destined place in the Grand Plan; only 
then can it be known whether or not the earth urge will 
draw it back into incarnation. This urge is not always 
from karmic necessity, except during the earlier stages 
of evolution, for many Souls return through pure love 
and compassion to help the world, even after they, 



A Study of Reincarnation or Rebirth 159 

as separated individuals, have gained all the necessary 
experience and wisdom. Therefore it is foolish for 
pupils or disciples to talk about this being their last 
incarnation; for were they advanced in wisdom they 
would know that their attitude proclaimed aloud that 
they were lacking in even ordinary discretion and 
common-sense. 

We must also bear in mind that there are many 
more Souls excarnate than incarnate. Many of them 
are waiting for the wave of civilization to rise to the 
special point that will permit them to fulfill their des- 
tiny in accord with karmic law. If the student will 
refer to what was said about the color Rays in the 
chapter on Evolution, it will be found to apply here. 
Since all Souls belong to one of the seven Great Rays 
they must wait for incarnation until the Ray and sub- 
ray to which they belong is in manifestation. Thus, 
if a Soul started its special work during the manifes- 
tation of a certain sub-ray of the Red Ray, while un- 
der special conditions hinted at elsewhere, it might 
incarnate and work out side-issues in other sub-rays, 
yet the main work could not be continued until the 
same sub-ray was again manifesting. 

There is no regular set time during which Souls re- 
main excarnate. It depends upon many conditions, 
and ranges all the way from almost immediate rebirth 
to five hundred years, and in some cases far more. 
There is almost as great a diversity in times and 
seasons for rebirth as is found in the affairs of men. 

When it is taught that a Soul incarnates sometimes 
in one sex and sometimes in another, or in each sex 
for seven incarnations alternately, only a very small 
fragment of a great truth was hinted at. This par- 
tial truth as time passed has developed some ridiculous 
and irrelevant conceptions. Again it is asserted bv 



160 The Voice of I sis 

many that sex does not inhere in the Soul, but the fact 
is that sex inheres in every manifestation of con- 
sciousness, although on the higher planes sex mani- 
fests in quite a different way from that which we 
know as sex in the physical body. While the great 
mystery of sex, in its fulness, is as sacredly guarded 
today as it has ever been, still, as this is the beginning 
of a new cycle or the reincarnation of a period of the 
manifestation of this great mystery, it becomes the 
duty of those Masters and Teachers connected with 
this special line of work to again give to the world a 
suggestion of the inner truths connected with sex. 
But alas, the time is not yet ripe to entirely tear aside 
the veil and reveal the mysteries of this subject al- 
though an effort is being made from the higher side 
of life to open the understanding of the few who 
can realize the divine possibilities of sex, that they 
may penetrate behind the veil. 

It is not the rule for a Soul to change its sex when 
incarnating, but is rather the exception. Since the 
separation of the sexes during the Third Race the 
positive and negative rays always retain their char- 
acteristics and tend to incarnate in a body corre- 
sponding to their polarity. The exception occurs prin- 
cipally for two reasons. The first one, which alas, at 
this period, is only too common, is that if a Soul 
gaining experience either through a male or a female 
body fails to appreciate the lessons of the opposite sex ; 
if it despises the other and either cruelly treats it, 
or holds itself superior to it, such a Soul at its 
next incarnation may find itself in a physical body of 
the despised sex ; for this would be the only way that 
such a Soul could learn the lessons of that sex and 
reap the Karma it had created. However, the sex 
of the incarnating Soul would not be changed. It would 



A Study of Reincarnation or Rebirth 161 

always be a male Soul in a female body or vice versa. 
The world has no trouble in recognizing this, for 
such misfitted Souls are frequent in every community, 
and there is no difficulty in noting the discrepancy 
between the sex of the incarnating entity and its body. 
Every male contains the potentiality of the female, 
and every female that of the male, and while we 
would not speak of this duality as sex upon the spirit- 
ual-plane, as we use the term sex on the physical-plane, 
still, if the student will remember what was said in 
the chapter on Karma in regard to each Soul being 
a part of the Great or Heavenly Man and having a 
special work to do and a special place in which to 
fulfill its destiny, comparing it to the body as we have 
done, it will be seen that some organs (Souls) must 
fulfill the function of the positive expression (mascu- 
linity) while others express the negative (femininity). 
Any other condition would be unthinkable, for while 
we know that all expressions of life, from molecule 
to God, are perfect epitomes of the Cosmos and contain 
the two opposite poles (positive and negative) within 
each, yet in the aggregation of either atoms, organs 
or Souls, each must function with either the positive 
or negative expression predominating. It is just as 
though you took a horseshoe magnet and cut it up 
into pieces. Each piece would be a perfect magnet with 
positive and negative poles, and if you could separate 
it into atoms each atom would have its positive and 
negative poles. But when you put the atoms to- 
gether to form a Grand Magnet, each would take its 
place on either the positive or negative side and express 
either attraction or repulsion. To carry this simile 
further, by reversing the current through the magnet 
it would be easy to make that which was the positive 
pole become the negative, and vice versa. This is 



162 The Voice of his 

what takes place when a masculine entity clothes itself 
with a feminine body. 

As to man evolving into an androgynous being in 
which both sexes manifest coequally, as long as man- 
kind is manifesting in separated sexes it is a waste 
of time and energy to try to imagine such an exist- 
ence; for until you have learned all the lessons pos- 
sible in separated bodies you can have no realization 
of what such a manifestation would be like. And 
you will never learn those lessons as long as you 
despise any function and refuse to master it. The 
two sexes can never blend into one until each has 
reached a perfect expression of his or her sex and they 
have learned to work together in perfect harmony 
while separated. The lesson is not for one sex to 
avoid or ignore the other, but to learn how the twain 
may become one in all things, in heart, mind and body, 
thus fulfilling the great Law of Sex. 

The second and rare cause for a change of sex is that 
a Soul may have reached a degree of Mastery, yet, 
owing to the World-Karma, and to the restrictions of 
conventionality, such a Soul may never have fully 
grasped or understood the opposite sex. For instance, 
a Soul expressing the masculine principle might be 
deeply desirous of entering into the experience of the 
inmost depths of the opposite Soul-expression so as to 
see its temptations, feel its oppression and learn its 
limitations, and thus be ready to take up a special 
work in the coming age, whose key-note is the equal- 
ization of the sexes and the liberation and the res- 
toration of woman to her proper place. Therefore, a 
Great Teacher in preparing to take the place of Leader 
in such an age might naturally desire to be clothed 
for one life period with a female outer Covering. But 
even in this case it would be evident to all thinkers that 



A Study of Reincarnation or Rebirth 163 

the sex of the entity differed from that of the body. 
Such a Great Teacher, moreover, might use that period 
(which would be her last earth experience), in enter- 
ing into all phases of life. She might use the power 
possessed by all such Teachers to merge the apparent 
personality into various other personalities. Thus, for 
a time, she might have to become one with and ap- 
parently manifest the qualities of a depraved sister, 
a swearing, roistering, swashbuckler, a pirate, a 
learned scholar or any other phase of humanity. She 
would thus, in a measure, be gaining the experience 
of humanity in the only way that would make the 
experience her very own, knowing all the tempta- 
tions and also the inner germ of love and hope that 
even the most degraded hide somewhere within. Such 
a Great Teacher might be compared to an author who, 
in gathering data for a coming work, lives for a time 
in each class of society. But in the case of the Great 
Teacher the power would be hers to absolutely be- 
come, for a time, the personality she desired to study. 
Thus when her Great Work began she would know 
just how to deal with all types of brothers and sisters, 
and from the higher planes be ready to direct the 
reaping of the golden grain sprung from the seeds of 
Divine Truth planted during her last earthly incarna- 
tion. Such a complex personality was she who 
planted the seed of the Wisdom Religion in the West- 
ern world. And she is still directing its garnering 
from the higher planes. 



CHAPTER XII. 

POWER. 

"Alas, alas, that all men should possess Alaya 
(Divine Essence), be one with the Great Soul, 
and that, possessing it, Alaya should so little avail 
them." — The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, 
Fragment II. 

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; 
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 
II Timothy, I, 7. 

Man is made in the image of God. This image, 
however, is not the corporeal likeness of a personal 
God, for God has no personality which can be imitated. 
But if we take God to mean that Supreme Power 
which is sent forth from the Absolute, and through 
whose many manifestations all things are brought 
forth, then we must recognize that this God must 
have all power. It is in the image of this All-power 
that man is made. Jesus, who stands as a symbol of 
perfected man, said : "All power is given unto me in 
heaven and in earth." 1 If this be true of the highest 
type of man, it is potentially true of all men, for all 
power is given unto man because he is created in the 
image of God, although in most men this power is 
latent because man in the aggregate has not yet come 
into his birthright, at-one-ment with his Father-in- 
heaven or Higher Self. The omnipotent powers of 
God operate through intelligent centers of power in 
the manifested universe. And to make it possible for 
perfected man to have "all power in heaven and in 
earth" and to fulfill the prophecy that he shall "become 
as one of us" (the gods), these centers of power must 

*St. Matthew XXVIII. 18. 



Power 165 

have their more or less active reflections in man, for 
man is truly the microcosm of the macrocosm. All 
the lower kingdoms have certain powers but only man 
has the powers of the Godhead, with which, when 
he manifests them as his own, he can create the new 
heaven and the new earth of the Apocalypse, wherein 
dwelleth righteousness. When man awakes to a real- 
ization that all powers in heaven and in earth are la- 
tent within himself — in heaven the powers of the God- 
head, in earth the powers of all creatures and all Na- 
ture — he will begin to reclaim his lost heritage, lost 
only in the sense of his having deserted it. 

In most Eastern teachings we find hints of these 
wondrous powers and are told that they represent 
steps up which every candidate for Mastery must la- 
boriously climb. The Western world is awakening to 
the use of some of these powers, especially the powers 
to control disease and dominate environment. The 
powers of man are six in number, synthesised in a 
seventh — the Astral Light of Eliphas Levi — and cor- 
respond to the seven principles of man. 1 Each power 
has its seat in a certain sacred center in the body. 
These seven centers, each with its seven subsidiary 
centers, are sometimes called the "forty-nine crucified 
saviors," signifying that the vital power of these centers 
is at present misused and crucified, and ere they can 
become man's Saviors they must be resurrected from 
the tomb of matter and made to function in a higher 
state. They are called the forty-nine fires because 
their light guides man to super-man. 

These powers are (1) the Supreme Power (Para- 
shakti) ; (2) the power of Intellect (Jnana-Shakti) ; 
(3) the power of Will (Ichchha-shakti) ; (4) the power 
of Th ought (Kriya-shakti) ; (5)the power of the Life- 

1 See The Seven Principles of Man, Bcsant, 



166 The Voice of I sis 

principle (Kundalini-shakti) and (6) the power of 
Speech (Mantrika-shakti) . Each power is an emanation 
from one of the Elohim, hence must be reflected in 
man to make him the image of God, for God, like the 
white light, in passing through the prism of matter, 
manifests in a seven-fold manner. Each power has 
its positive and negative aspects, and until we can 
correlate with the positive ray of its Progenitor we 
are buffetted by its negative aspect. 

It is impossible to consider these powers separately, 
for without the cultivation of all none can be truly 
operative. The Supreme Power is the power which 
man has of correlating with Divinity through the 
breath. All creatures breathe, and we are accustomed 
to say that "breath is life," and ordinarily when man 
ceases to breathe he ceases to live objectively, but man 
alone, because he can bring his other powers to bear 
upon it, can make the breath more than the mere draw- 
ing in of physical life. Within the auric zone of the 
earth there are many subtle forces unknown to science 
and barely mentioned by even the deeper students of 
mysticism because so sacred, so potent and so powerful 
that their very names must scarce be whispered. 
Breath, combined with Will and Thought, is the power 
by which man reaches up to the higher worlds and 
opens an avenue through which these potent forces may 
reach his Inner Self and lift him above mundane things, 
and at the same time regenerate his physical body. 
There are those who, holding the thought of health, 
breathe for physical health and obtain it, but it is 
possible to use the breath to obtain far more than mere 
physical health. Its misuse or negative aspect can also 
bring disasters undreamed of by the pseudo-occultist. 
Realize that you are responsible for every breath that 
you breathe, for through the breath you are spreading 



Power 167 

either God-love or disease. It is commonly thought 
that the outgoing breath contains a virulent poison, 
and so it does if you permit it, for it carries off certain 
effluvia from the decaying atoms within you. Are you 
willing to be a source of infection? If this is your will 
and your thought then it is what you become. When 
the breath is foul you are abusing your body, it is sick 
and out of order. It is within your power to be healthy, 
to be a source of inspiration and life to all. For health 
and life and love are as infectious as their opposites. 
Therefore, every time you become conscious of it, use 
your power of the breath to breathe in Divine Love, to 
breath in Spiritual Life that it shall so cleanse and 
transmute your physical atoms that your breath shall 
become as that of a little child. 

Mind or intellect should not be confused with the 
power of thought. The human mind is the reflection in 
man of the great Universal Mind, the Divine Ideation 
or what some call Cosmic Consciousness. It is the 
vehicle through which thought operates. In man mind 
manifests in a threefold manner, the subconscious or 
animal mind, the conscious or human mind and the 
super-conscious or Divine Mind. The subconscious 
mind is composed of the consciousness of every cell, 
organ and nerve ganglia synthesized and overshadowed 
by the animal soul. A reflection or shadow of this 
power can be traced in all the kingdoms, even those in 
which it is still latent and which have no power of 
thought. Being the mind of the animal soul it is below 
the consciousness of the human reincarnating Ego. 
To its control are relegated all those functions which 
operate without man's conscious control, i. e., respira- 
tion, circulation, secretion, excretion, etc. But when 
these functions are deranged beyond the power of the 
subconscious to restore it appeals to the human con- 



168 The Voice of Isis 

sciousness for aid through pain or discomfort and man 
becomes aware that something is wrong. The sub- 
conscious mind is the vehicle of the passions and desires 
normal to the animal soul and which it seeks to gratify, 
but which must be controlled and directed to their 
highest uses by the will of the human Ego. This 
lower or animal mind functions through centers in the 
medulla oblongata, the cerebellum and also in the solar 
plexus and other nerve ganglia containing gray matter. 
When these centers are upset by inharmony or the 
baser emotions — fear, hate, envy, jealousy, sorrow, etc. 
— the functions controlled by them are inhibited or 
perverted, and the physical, mental and moral health 
suffers, while if they are stimulated by peace, tran- 
quillity and harmony or exalted by joy and love their 
normal functions are activated or increased with corre- 
sponding welfare of the whole organism. Habits are 
the result of training the subconscious mind to act in a 
certain way. Most vague and illogical dreams are the 
result of the subconscious mind wandering about in -the 
astral world during the absence of the human Ego from 
the body during sleep and therefore without its guid- 
ance or supervision. Hence it is comparatively easy to 
train the subconscious mind not to wander so that only 
the spiritual lessons given by the Higher Self through 
symbolic visions or logical, well-remembered dreams 
will be brought back to the waking consciousness. 

From the above we will see that we should treat the 
subconscious mind — as well as the body — as a good and 
faithful servant, but should not look to it for a higher 
degree of intelligence than we could expect from the 
highest animal, and certainly should never look to it 
for guidance in moral or spiritual problems. 

The conscious or human mind (manas) is the con- 
sciousness of the human reincarnating Ego inhabiting 



Power 169 

the body and limited by its faculties. It functions 
through the cortex of the brain, through whose centers 
it controls the subconscious. It is the great battle- 
ground where the Ego is influenced from below by the 
animal mind and from above by the Divine Mind, yet 
having free-will to choose its own course of action. It 
is called lower or higher manas according as it identifies 
itself with the desires of the animal mind or the desires 
of its Father-in-heaven. Its characteristic is self-con- 
sciousness, the feeling of I AM I. "The following are 
some of its manifestations when placed under the influ- 
ence or control of material conditions, (a) The power 
of the mind in interpreting our sensations, (b) Its 
power in recalling past ideas (memory) and raising 
future expectation, (c) Its power as exhibited in what 
are called by modern psychologists 'the laws of associa- 
tion,' which enables it to form persisting connections 
between various groups of sensations and possibilities 
of sensations, and thus generate the notion or idea of 
an external object, (d) Its power in connecting our 
ideas together by the mysterious links of memory, and 
thus generating the notion of self or individuality. The 
following are some of its manifestations ivhen liberated 
from the bonds of matter: (a) Clairvoyance, (b) 
Psychometry." * 

The super-conscious or Divine Mind is the mind of 
the Higher Self or Father-in-heaven, one with God. 
This Divine Consciousness overshadows the human 
mind much as the human overshadows the sub- 
conscious. It is from this source that the higher 
guidance called conscience and intuition comes i and 
its Voice is often mistaken for the voice of some 
Divine Being or Master. It functions through the 
pmea^jyland and pituitary body located in the middle 
of the brain. 

^The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I., p. 312, I. & II. 



170 The Voice of his 

The power of Will^ is truly a godlike one, for it 
enables man to follow the will of God or, setting up 
his own will, to follow his own desires in opposition 
to the will of God, or the Great Law of Good. If 
God's will were merely reflected in or imposed upon 
man, he would of necessity have to follow that will, 
which would then be not a power given him to use 
as he would, but a leading-string which he must 
follow. Man alone has free-will. The animals are 
subject to the will of the Entity governing the 
Group-soul of their species. An animal acts because 
of instinct, not because of free-will. Man, through 
his power of Will can reach up into the world of 
Divine Mind and bring to himself all the power of 
Mind, or he can grovel with the beasts in the World 
of Desire and by his superior powers intensify its 
evils. Thus it is that in a world created by a God of 
Love man has the power to create evil. Will is a 
power bestowed upon man, for the use of which man 
alone is responsible — he is not a mere puppet, 
forced to follow the will of God. 

Thought is the power by which man creates 
images or moulds within which Divine Ideation 
manifests, while imagination is the power by which 
he comprehends the subjective ideal, the outer sem- 
blance of which may come into objective manifesta- 
tion through thought. For instance, a painter may 
in imagination comprehend ideal love, but he must 
use thought to mould the details in his effort to 
represent it on canvas. Psychology says that "every 
thought tends to express itself in terms of muscular 
activity unless counteracted by a more powerful 
thought of opposite character." Thus through the 
powers of Thought man creates his world, or, as the 
Bible expresses it, "As he thinketh in his heart, so 



Power 171 

is he." And because of this mould-making power, 
that which is repeatedly thought of will ultimately 
manifest. If we think continually of ourselves as 
poor or sick or unhappy we are making it more 
possible for poverty, sickness and unhappiness to 
manifest. In fact we are creating a mould into which 
they must flow. Conversely if we think of peace, 
plenty, health and happiness they are just as certain to 
manifest. 

Thought manifests in a dual way. It is the middle 
y principle and together with Mind and Breath, can be 
/ used to draw inspiration from the Divine or it can be 
dragged down and made to waste its force on triviali- 
ties, self-pity, etc. When you recognize its power to 
make images or moulds into which the life-forces 
naturally flow and shape themselves and become 
objective, it is not to be wondered at that if wasted on 
every ache and pain or poverty, troubles or petty 
worries they grow apace and become objective. 

The power of the Life-principle is that magneto- 
dynamic force which correlates man with Nature and 
through which he either dominates it or is dominated 
by it. It works in Nature to readjust and harmonize 
Spirit and matter. It is the power of rhythm, the power 
of all forces which take a serpentine path. Frequently 
persons say they know a storm is coming by their 
aches and pains, and we know that all animals are 
warned by this same power to protect themselves from 
the approaching storm. In man this power is far more 
than a common consciousness with Nature, for by it, 
if he wills so to be, he is literally the ruler of Nature 
or the Lord of Creation. It is through this power 
that he impresses his state of development upon the 



172 The Voice of I sis 

Cosmos. When storms, earthquakes, tidal waves, vol- 
canoes or catastrophes of other kinds take place, many 
say, "Behold the work of God! How insignificant is 
man !" This is false. God never made a storm, an 
earthquake or a catastrophe of any kind, for God is 
the great Law of Love. They are all evidences of 
man's' power. Had man never sent out evil thoughts, 
wicked words, blasphemies and curses, the earth's 
aura could never be so charged with destructive forces 
that a catastrophe was necessary to dissipate them 
and bring about equilibrium. Had man never exer- 
cised demoniacal cruelty to his brother man, neither 
the animate nor inanimate worlds would be at enmity 
with him. When a cataclysm takes place, instead of 
saying that man is but a helpless atom before the 
manifestations of Nature we should say, Behold how 
powerful is man ! For it is by the misuse of this 
power of the Life-principle, exercised through free- 
will, that man has brought suffering and destruction 
into a world created by love. So is it with man's 
body. Unless it has been purified through love and 
spiritual aspiration this power of the Life-force — 
which in ordinary man is almost dormant — will bring 
about readjustments in his body comparable to earth- 
quakes and cyclones. Therefore to meditate upon 
this force or its center in the body and strive to rouse 
it into activity is extremely dangerous, for such prac- 
tices have been known to cause insanity and instant 
death. The disciples said of Jesus, "What manner 
of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey 
him!" This indicates what perfected man can do 
when he uses his powers according to the Law of Love. 
To overcome fear is the first step on the Path, for 
fear can be conquered only by love. If fear were 
conquered absolutely, ere man learned to correlate his 



Power 173 

powers with God-love, conditions would be far worse 
than today, for even fear is the servant of God. Fear 
is a paralyzing and disintegrating force, and if it were 
not that the catastrophes caused by man's disobedience 
engendered fear, the mistakes of man would become 
a solid wall of darkness shutting him away from God. 
Fear is continually working as the Great Disintegrator, 
in reality helping the force of the evil created by 
man, which is like a miasmic mist, to precipitate and 
exhaust its power upon the earth in the form of 
storms and catastrophes, and in the human body as 
sickness, disease and death, instead of accumulating 
indefinitely. When mankind learns the Law of Love, 
fear will have no more work to do, and will cease to 
appall man at every step. God did not give man fear. 
Man himself brought it into manifestation. From an- 
other aspect fear is love perverted. In one sense 
fear is the Angel of the Flaming Sword guarding 
the entrance to Eden, Eden being a perfected earth 
and a perfected physical body, with its trees bearing 
every manner of fruit good for man, i. e. f his powers. 
It was the tree which grew in the midst of the Garden, 
or this Kundalini or serpentine force which functions 
in the spinal column, that proved man's undoing. 1 
Only when this force is mastered and fear vanquished 
can man re-enter Eden, cultivate the trees and eat 
of the fruit thereof as a faithful husbandman. To 
conquer fear you must resolutely use all your powers 
to create Good, for as long as you create evil you 
must have fear to help disintegrate and dissipate it. 
"Beware of fear that spreadeth, like the black and 
soundless wings of midnight bat, between the moon- 
light of the Soul and thy great goal that loometh in 
the distance far away. Fear, O Disciple, kills the 
will a nd stays all action The Path that 

1 See Chapter XVIII. 



174 The Voice of I sis 

leadeth on is lighted by one fire — the light of daring 
burning in the heart. The more one dares, the more 
he shall obtain. The more he fears, the more that 
light shall pale — and that alone can guide." * Dare, 
Do, Keep Silent. Become one with the Silence in 
which all forces are potent. 

Speech is one of the greatest powers, for it includes 
the powers of sound, number, color and, when written, 
form. We are all more or less familiar with the 
power of sound, both in the spoken word and in the 
chanting of mantra, etc. One who masters this power 
has the world at his feet. This is illustrated to a 
slight degree by the ease with which an eloquent 
speaker can sway an audience. In this chapter but a 
hint can be given, for it would require a separate 
lesson to even outline this subject. The point of 
development each Soul has reached is revealed in the 
tones of the voice, just as nature-tones indicate Nature's 
stage of evolution. We may carefully control our 
words and manner of expression, but the tones of 
the voice will reveal the true feeling back of the 
words. This inner attitude is quickly recognized, 
especially by children and animals. In fact, tone is 
the key-note of man's power over the animal kingdom ; 
for by the tone he either arouses enmity or love and 
obedience. The spoken word can never die, but will 
go on working out the potency and power, not only 
of its tone, but also of its color, number and form 
and the thought-pictures created by it in the minds 
of its hearers, together with the power of the Will 
which sent it forth. Every word and tone spoken 
by man is registered upon the etheric substance of 
the Akashic Records. This principle has been dem- 
onstrated and its truth verified in a physical way in 
the phonograph. Speech is the first power for man 

1 The Voice of the Silence, Fragment III, Blavatsky. 



Power 175 

to master as a medium through which all his powers 
may be made operative on earth. 

It is said that, "Before the voice can speak in the 
presence of the Masters, it must have lost the power 
to wound." To speak in the presence of the Masters 
means speaking as a Master or that the spoken word 
will carry with it the mastery of conditions. To 
bring to your minds some of the practical effects of 
this power we would ask you for one day to note 
carefully the effect your words have on those about 
you. Many pupils ask for something practical to do 
to develop occult powers and manifest the higher life. 
Noting the effect of your words is practical and most 
important and a practice which can be indulged in 
without fear of dangerous consequences. And until 
at least some conception of the power of speaking 
kindly and lovingly but to some purpose and some 
degree of mastery over it has been attained the devel- 
opment of all other occult powers will be retarded 
if not actually prevented. 

God spake the word and the world was created. 
Man speaks one little word and a new world of glad- 
ness is created in his brother's life, or man speaks a 
word and a brother is disheartened and gives up the 
fight, or a sister's good name is taken from her and 
she is pushed out into the darkness, is pushed down 
under the feet of the multitude. Think what one 
kind word can do ! How it can bring sunshine and 
peace and courage into your own life and the lives of 
others ! Waste no force in frivolous or negative 
chatter, speak only positive words, words of love, 
words of power. If your brother offend you, speak 
words of love that your heart may send back nothing 
but love. Never withhold a sincere word of love or 
endearment or a word of help, encouragement or 



176 The Voice of I sis 

health. A kind word spoken even to a stray dog 
will not return to you void. Know well that until you 
have mastered this power and can speak words of 
health, strength, cheer, courage and love you would 
better follow the injunction, "Let your communication 
be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay." For remember well, "what- 
soever is more than these cometh of evil." The mean- 
ing- of this is that any unkind, boastful or untrue word 
is bound to return for you to prove and adjust, prob- 
ably just when you think you have conquered. Be 
especially careful in regard to written words. When 
the world begins to understand this power there will 
be fewer misleading statements sent out under the 
guise of occult teaching which become snares and 
wiles to mislead those who are seeking enlighten- 
ment. We cannot emphasize too strongly this fact: 
"That every idle word (either spoken or written) that 
men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in 
the day of judgment." 

As to how to attain and use these powers : They are 
yours now. They are in constant activity and, unless 
consciously directed toward the unification of man- 
kind in God-love, they are adding their force to the 
misery of life, both in your own body and in the whole 
Cosmos. Hence, there is but one thing to do — realize 
that God is Love, and that Love is the one great Law 
of all Life, manifesting in you in this seven-fold Path 
of Power. If this realization seems difficult, set to 
work at it in earnest. Repeat it to yourself again 
and again. Breathe it. Vitalize it with the Life- 
principle. Think of it. Will it. Grasp it. Impress 
it upon every atom of your manifested expressions of 
being. And the ultimate result can only be Victory. 

When you synthesise your six powers in the seventh, 
the power of becoming one in consciousness with God- 



Power 177 

love — which is the power proceeding from the heart 
and always spoken of as the power of the Diamond 
Heart or the Heart Doctrine — then you can have noth- 
ing to fear, for "perfect love casteth out fear." This 
is the power of becoming one with your Higher Self. 
Its seat is in the heart, for in the heart are centers 
corresponding to and connected with all the centers, 
as an electric switch-board may be connected with 
many sub-stations. Therefore by cultivating the heart 
qualities and dwelling in peace and love you can 
awaken and dominate all the centers and make their 
cultivation easier. 

This is not some far-off possibility, for the instant 
you synthesise all your powers in the heart and seek 
to subserviate your life and action to the Law of Love 
you are one in aim with your Higher Self, and this 
Higher Self will manifest more and more through 
you. Then will there be no death, for death will be 
swallowed up in victory. You have nothing to fear 
for you are all-powerful. You have but to direct your 
powers in accord with the universal Law of God 
which is Love. 

Look around you and see the evil man's powers 
have wrought when working contrary to the Law! 
Then think what they could accomplish if they had 
this Great Law working back of and through 
them ! If but two or three are gathered together 
"in my name" (The Christ-love), ready to believe 
the spoken word of power as herein delivered to 
you, *. e., that you are today as gods and that all 
power is given unto you in heaven and in earth if 
you really will to become one with the great Law 
of Love, then the regeneration of the world would 
quickly be accomplished. And if but seven Souls, or 
even three, can be gathered together and work con- 



178 The Voice of his 

sciously in a perfect realization of this truth, making 
a determined effort to work with the Law, soon there 
will manifest on the earth-plane a practical Center of 
Right Living of such force and social magnitude that 
the whole earth will feel its influence, and the deplor- 
able conditions under which the world now suffers 
will begin to adjust themselves. 

There is no use reading a lesson such as this and 
thinking it a mere theory, for it is more than mere 
theory. It comes to you as the Word of Power. It 
says to each Soul : What are you going to do about 
it? On which side of the battle will you fight? Into 
whose coffers will you pour your substance, God's 
or Mammon's? Choose ye this day whom ye will 
serve. "O fearless Aspirant, lo k deep within the well 
of thine own heart, and answer. Knowest thou of 
Self the powers, O thou perceiver of external shadows? 
If thou dost not — then art thou lost." 1 

1 The Voice of the Silence, Fragment III, Blavatsky. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

A BRIEF OUTLINE OF EVOLUTION — THE RELATION OF 
THE MASTERS TO HUMANITY. 

Just as the Law of Karma is indissolubly con- 
nected with the Law of Reincarnation, so is reincar- 
nation indissolubly connected with the Law of Evo- 
lution; for without reincarnation, evolution could 
not be carried on. Hence, a brief outline of the chief 
factors in evolution, on this planet, will first be con- 
sidered. But in this short chapter we do not at- 
tempt to cover all phases of the subject. We merely 
view it from one angle, with a full recognition that 
it may be viewed from many angles. 

As correctly stated by the naturalist, Agassiz : 
"All things had their origin in Spirit — evolution 
having originally begun from above and proceed- 
ing downwards, instead of the reverse, as taught 
in the Darwinian theory." 1 At the first rebirth of 
our earth — for the law* of cyclic rebirth applies to 
planets and systems as well as to men — it was 
brought into manifestation, or ''created" 2 by a ray 
of pure white light from the Absolute penetrating 
into the chaotic debris of previous world-periods. 
As a ray of light in passing through a prism is sep- 
arated into seven color-rays, so this Ray of spirit- 
ual light in passing through the prism of manifes- 
tation was separated into seven great differentia- 
tions or color-rays called Hierarchies. These are 
composed of spiritual Beings manifesting the cre- 
ative power of their color. For just as science has 

1 Principles of Zoology, p. 154. 
* Not, however, out of nothing. 



180 The Voice of Isis 

demonstrated that every color has its special and 
characteristic work in the world, so each of these 
spiritual color-rays has its own part to play in the 
evolution of both man and the lower kingdoms. 
Each Ray is presided over by one of the manifes- 
tations of Deity collectively spoken of in the Bible 
as the Elohim and in Eastern teaching as the Rishis, 
Sons of Wisdom, etc., who needed this manifesta- 
tion to perfect their experience, and to prepare 
conditions to further the evolution of the lower be- 
ings — the humanity of this globe — under their 
charge. 

The great Spiritual Masters, constituting the 
higher degrees of each Ray, gained their god-like 
perfection in previous world-periods 1 of almost im- 
measurable length, and gained mastery over the 
cosmic forces while upon the lunar chain of globes. 2 
Hence, they' are called our Lunar Ancestors or 
Fathers (Pitris). But they still needed the experi- 
ence of guiding the evolution of this darkest, be- 
cause lowest, of planets, the earth, to perfect them 
in wisdom. After they had enjoyed a rest, or pe- 
riod of withdrawal from activity in manifestation, 
for incalculable aeons, they took up the formation 
and evolution of this planet. - By the power of con- 
centrated Divine Will and Wisdom, they con- 
sciously formed and brought into manifestation our 
earth as an advanced field wherein to train and 
further the evolution of humanity. They did this 

1 Great Life Cycles or Manvantaras. See Chapter XV. 

2 "The Sun is the Giver of Life to the whole Planetary System; 
the Moon is the Giver of Life to our Globe; and the early races un- 
derstood and knew it, even in their infancy." — The Secret Doctrine, 
Blavatsky, Vol. I., p. 415. "It is, then, the Moon that plays the largest 
and most important part, as well in the formation of the Earth itself, 
as in the peopling thereof with human beings. The Lunar Monads, or 
Pitris, the ancestors of man, become in reality man himself." — Ibid, Vol, 
I., p. 206. 



f A Brief Outline of Evolution 181 

by first projecting from themselves into the centers 1 
where the inert matter for the new planet was sleep- 
ing in darkness, the thought-forms of that which 
was to be, and later projected their astral bodies. 
This inert matter comprised all that material on 
all planes which they, in the course of their evo- 
lution toward Godhood, had thrown off and had 
not had the opportunity to spiritualize and redeem. 
Hence it was laid aside until they had gained the 
godlike power which would enable them con- 
sciously to redeem all their emanations and crea- 
tions. If each Soul was required to redeem in one 
life all its mistakes and spiritualize every atom 
with which it had been connected in even one life, 
the Cycle of Necessity would be never ending. In- 
stead of this all tasks that are beyond the strength 
of the Soul in any one incarnation are held back 
until it has grown strong enough little by little to 
work them out. However, the essence of all the 
mistakes remains with the evolving planet as a part 
of the World Karma, so that when the evolving 
Soul reaches the point where it can begin con- 
sciously to redeem its leftovers it will also help 
to redeem the same influences in the World Karma. 
During the first two cyclic day-periods 2 of the 
earth the Elohim are said to have passed "through 
the whole triple cycle of the mineral, vegetable and 
animal kingdoms, in their most ethereal, filmy and 
rudimentary forms, in order to clothe themselves 
in, and assimilate, the nature of the newly formed 
Chain." 3 After ethereal human forms had been 
evolved by these Lunar Fathers, at the close of the 
third day-period, they gradually became so dense 

1 Called laya-centers. 

* Periods of activity called Rounds. See Chapter XV. 

» Ibid, Vol I., p. 197. 



182 The Voice of I sis 

that it may be said that they clothed themselves in 
flesh — "coats of skin," as the Bible puts it. 1 This 
was done consciously for the sake of evolution and 
experience, and not, as theology teaches, as a result 
of a "fall" through disobedience. It was a "fall" 
only in the sense of a descent into matter. These 
human forms, created and informed by the Lunar 
Fathers, had no self-conscious (only animal) mind 
(instinct), and could not continue their evolution 
until they had been endowed with human mind 
(self-consciousness). 

Animal consciousness attains to its ultimate per- 
fection in reason while human consciousness attains 
to its ultimate perfection in the direct knowledge 
gained through intuition. As the whole of a species 
is guided by one Group-soul, instinct is the power of 
the animal to respond directly to the consciousness 
of the Group-soul. The human-animal being guided 
by his own Father-in-heaven or his own individual 
Soul, in intuition consciously recognizes the direct 
guiding voice of his divine Higher Self. Hence 
intuition stands exactly over instinct on the spiral 
path of evolution. Both are the voices of their re- 
spective Souls, in the animal imparted collectively 
to the species, in man personally to the individual. 

The gift of mind was accomplished at the begin- 
ning of the Fourth Root Race, by the projection into 
man of the Divine Spark from a still higher class 
of Spiritual Beings, the Solar Father (Pitris). It 
was at this time that the history of man as a cor- 
poreal being began. 

There are three streams of evolution going on in 
man at the same time, each advancing along its own 
path and each inextricably interwoven with and as- 

1 Gtnesis, III, 21. 



T A Brief Outline of Evolution 183 

sisting the other. 1 It is this complexity that makes 
so much confusion in the study of reincarnation. 
There is the evolution of the animal body, evolved 
and informed by the Lunar Fathers; the evolution 
of mind implanted in the bodies by the Sons of Mind, 
the Solar Fathers; and the evolution of character, 
which is the result of the overshadowing Spirit — a 
Divine Emanation from the Absolute — working 
through both the Solar and Lunar Fathers and 
forming the Divine Indweller, the God-within-us. 
The history of humanity shows that each of these 
lines of evolution has been made the object of wor- 
ship, (a) There are those who worship the perfection 
of the animal body, holding that their first duty is 
to bring it to perfection, maintain its health and pro- 
long its life upon the physical-plane. Yet prolonged 
life in a physical body, without spiritual perfection, 
would be a curse rather than a blessing. This doc- 
trine reached its greatest perfection among the 
Greeks, many of whom are now reincarnating and 
are putting forth the old ideas, (b) There are those 
who worship the mind, considering it the supreme 
power. The so-called age of reason in reality is the age 
of the worship of mind, (c) There are those who give 
exclusive worship to the studies which make for spir- 
itual advance, even at the expense of physical and intel- 
lectual life, hermits and yogis for example. Perfect 
evolution, however, can be obtained only when the 
three go hand in hand, for spiritual evolution can 
manifest perfectly only as a result of the harmonious 
blending of all three, a perfect mind in a perfect 
body, illumined by spiritual intuition. The above 
accounts for the many discrepancies in life and evo- 
lution, for it is impossible for any human being to 

1 Thi Stcret Doctrine, Vol. 1., p. 283. 



184 The Voice of his 

say that one is more advanced than another; one 
may be advanced along one line while another may 
be equally as advanced along another line. 

Although we speak of the Lunar Fathers as our 
physical Progenitors, it must be borne in mind that 
they are Divine, having attained at-one-ment ere 
the evolution of this planet began. After the astral 
forms or models were produced by the Lunar Fath- 
ers, "The evolution of the external form, or body 
round the astral, is produced by the terrestrial forces, 
just as in the case of the lower kingdoms; but the 
evolution of the internal, or real, Man is purely spir- 
itual. It is now no more a passage of the impersonal 
Monad through many and various forms of matter 
. . . but a journey of the 'Pilgrim-Soul' through 
various states, not only of matter, but of self-con- 
sciousness and self-perception." l Thus it was that, 
aided by the Emanations from their Progenitors, 
the Celestial Solar Fathers — who stand to the Lunar 
Fathers as our Higher Self stands to us — the Lunar 
Fathers became the Progenitors of humanity. These 
great classes of Spiritual Fathers, who are still liv- 
ing and guiding human evolution from the higher 
realms, are the Divine Men known to us as the 
Masters of Wisdom. There are many accounts of 
the presence of these Divine Men — the gods — on 
earth, founding nations, establishing laws, teaching 
and guiding humanity face to face, to be found in 
the sacred writings of all ancient peoples, many of 
whom still claim to have sprung from the "gods." 

The seven great groups of these Spiritual Beings 
are classified in a manner similar to the groups of 
colors in our solar spectrum, each group being 
called a Ray, bearing the name of one of the seven 

*!bid, Vol. I., 9. 198. 



A Brief Outline of Evolution 



185 



DIAGRAM III * 

The Seven Hierarchies and their Subdivisions. 



Color-rays 


Sub-rays 




VIOLET 






Indigo 






Blue 


V 


VIOLET 


Green 


"3 




Yellow 


> 




Orange 






Red 






Violet 






INDIGO 






Blue 


o 
bo 


INDIGO 


Green 


•5 




Yellow 


a 




Orange 






Red 






Violet 






Indigo 






BLUE 


t> 


BLUE 


Green 


_s 




Yellow 


3 




Orange 






Red 






Violet 






Indigo 






Blue 


e 


GREEN 


GREEN 


0) 




Yellow 


O 




Orange 






Red 






Violet 






Indigo 






Blue 


£ 


YELLOW 


Green 


^2 




YELLOW 


91 

>< 




Orange 




Red 






Violet 






Indigo 






Blue 


M 


ORANGE 


Green 


a 




Yellow 


o 




ORANGE 




Red 






Violet 






Indigo 






Blue 




RED 


Green 


"S 




Yellow 


t>i 




Orange 






RED 





'The Secret Doctrine, Vol. III., 483. 



186 The Voice of Isis 

colors, viz., the Red Ray, Yellow Ray, Violet Ray, 
etc. Just as the colors of the spectrum are emana- 
tions from the one White Light, so are these Spirit- 
ual Creators emanations from the Divine One — 
the Absolute. 1 These Rays constitute seven great 
Hierarchies, which are presided over by seven still 
greater Celestial Beings, 2 each of whom is called 
the Progenitor or Father of His Ray. It must be 
borne in mind, however, that each Ray contains rep- 
resentatives of all the other Rays. (See Diagram III.) 
In looking at the sun we see a halo composed of the 
seven colors in concentric rings. These rings repre- 
sent the Hierarchies and in reality conserve the forces 
of the colors composing them. The same law is illus- 
trated in the rainbow although only one segment of 
the circle is visible. 

Each great Ray, or Hierarchy of Masters mani- 
fests in turn, and, like the notes in the musical scale, 
in rhythmic cadence, its Progenitor or Father pre- 
siding during its manifestation as Captain of the 
Host. All the Masters belonging to a Ray are most 
active during the manifestation of their Ray, while 
those belonging to all the other Rays, even the Pro- 
genitors, are, for that period, subservient to the Ray 
that is manifesting in activity. This does not mean 
that the other Rays are dormant, but, like a grand 
symphony, when one note or Ray is dominant, all 
the others are complementary. Thus absolute har- 
mony results. While we say a certain Ray or color 

1 While there can be but one God, the Absolute, there are many 
gods, i. e., Spiritual, Creative, Emanations. 

2 The Seven Creative Spirits, the Dhyan Chohans, who correspond 
to the Hebrew Elohim. It is the same Hierarchy of Archangels to 
which St. Michael, St. Gabriel, and others belong, in Christian The- 
ogony." — Ibid, Vol. I., p. 73. "The Seven Spirits of God sent forth 
into all the earth." — Revelation V. 6, "The seven spirits which are be- 
fore his throne." — Ibid. I, 4. "And I saw the seven angels which stood 
before Gcd. M — Ibid, VIII. 2. 



A Brief Outline of Evolution 187 

is presiding, in reality it is man's consciousness that 
is passing through that band of color or Ray of force 
and consciousness, learning its lessons and gaining 
its forces. For example, a Celestial Being * * * 
is the Progenitor or Father of the Red Ray or Hier- 
archy of Masters. Under Him are the masters of 
His sub-rays and lesser sub-rays, and so on down to 
those Souls who are achieving mastery and enter- 
ing the ranks from the races now on earth. It is 
the aggregate of all these Masters that is known to 
us as the Great White Lodge. It is called the White 
Lodge because, like the white light, it is the har- 
monious blending of all the seven Rays. 

The Great White Lodge is divided, just as is human- 
ity, into seven great classes or Degrees, each of which 
is sub-divided into seven Orders. The seventh or 
lowest Order of The Lodge overlaps or blends into 
humanity, just as humanity overlaps or blends into 
the animal kingdom. 1 Not that the Masters of the 
lowest Order are not human, but more than human. 
The Masters of this lowest Order are still upon the 
physical-plane, using physical bodies and working 
with and teaching humanity. There are also certain 
Orders of Masters who are guiding evolution below 
the human kingdom as Group-souls. 

Each of the Masters composing the higher De- 
grees is the Progenitor or Father of many human 
beings ; for, while gaining the perfected wisdom of 
former planets during their long periods of evolu- 
tion, they were consciously creating, both by the 
power of Divine Will and by emanation. Every 
emanation of their life-substance, and every cell 
composing their various bodies, has now evolved 
into the human kingdom, and the Master of Wis- 

*Se« Chapter III. 



188 The Voice of Isis 

dom who originally sent out the emanation or cell, 
is called its spiritual Father, no matter what its 
present stage of evolution. Hence, all mankind are 
the children of one of these great Spiritual Crea- 
tors. In the same manner we are the Progenitors, 
and sometime must become the Guides and Saviors, 
of every cell that has composed our various bodies 
in all our incarnations, as well as all the creatures 
created by our thoughts and desires, when, aeons 
hence, they have evolved to a point analogous to 
present humanity ; for they are the children of our cre- 
ation. They are not, however, redeemed as individ- 
ual atoms, but as more or less composite units. 
Each separate cell does not evolve into a separate 
human being, but according to its nature and stage 
of evolution when cast off will it become a part of 
an organ in a human body. Man's body therefore 
is an aggregation of many sentient lesser centers of 
consciousness, hence the necessity for man's ruling 
his subconscious mind, as it is the synthetic prod- 
uct of the consciousness of the lesser centers. 

In the early days of the Fourth Root Race, when 
humanity were but children, having newly received 
the gift of self-consciousness (mind), they were 
guided and taught face to face by the Fathers — the 
Elohim — just as a father and mother (for these 
great Beings were both Father and Mother — an- 
drogynous) 1 might guide and teach a child. But 
when the child has grown to manhood it must leave 
its parents' guiding care and go out alone to meet 
the trials and temptations of the world and prove 
how much of the parents' teachings it has built into 
chara cter. This is what humanity has been doing 

1 "In the days that God created man, in the likeness of God made 
he him; male and female created he them; and blessed them, and 
called their name Adam."— Genesis V, 1-2. It was from the androgynous 
first Adam that Eve was taken i. t., the sexes were separated. 



A Brief Outline of Evolution 189 

ever since that time; for by the end of the Fourth 
Root Race humanity had grown up and become dis- 
obedient. With the destruction of Atlantis began 
the individual working out of that disobedience, and 
an endeavor to put into practice the lessons learned. 
The Red Ray is now manifesting through human- 
ity, and has been for an immense period of time 
(Fourth Round), the whole Bible being but a his- 
tory of this Ray. Consequently the Great Being 
* * * who is the Progenitor of that Ray, is what 
might be called the Commander-in-chief of the 
forces of evolution operative throughout this cycle. 
Humanity has to evolve all the way through this 
Red Ray, from its lowest sub-ray to its highest. 
Having passed the middle point of its densest mani- 
festation, humanity is now upon the upward arc to- 
ward more spiritual states of Being. As the occult 
maxim, "As above, so below," and vice versa, holds 
good for all planes and all laws — in reality there be- 
ing but one Great Law — to form a conception of 
what lies before us we have but to consider what the 
lower aspects of red stand for. Red is the color of 
the blood which, in the body, carries the life-force. 
Hence, in its lower aspects, red is expressed by 
anger, passion, war, anarchy and bloodshed. It is 
through these expressions of the force of the Red 
Ray that humanity has been struggling until it has 
reached the point where the lessons of the lower 
octave must be registered in the higher. The life- 
blood of humanity has reached the point where, 
laden with the vileness and the effluvia of animal 
man, it is being purified by the Breath of the Spirit, 
and henceforth must take on a new tint, just as the 
physical blood is purified and changes its color in the 
lungs. Anger purified becomes love-force and en- 



190 The Voice of his 

ergy that will conquer all difficulties ; passion must 
be turned to fervor and ardor for spiritual union; 
war turned to spiritual warfare, where good tri- 
umphs over evil, light over darkness ; anarchy be- 
comes the one Law of Brotherhood; bloodshed be- 
comes the pouring out of the spiritual life-force, for 
as blood carries the physical life-force its corre- 
spondence on the higher planes is the vehicle for the 
spiritual life-force. The highest tint will be reached 
when the Spiritual Sun shines through this Red Ray, 
and permeates it and brings out the rose tint of Christ- 
love and Brotherhood. 

The vision of St. John, as portrayed in the Book 
of Revelation, and commonly accepted as a descrip- 
tion of the end of the world, is simply the winding 
up of the dominance of the Red Ray. Although the 
same symbolic teachings are given in the Book of 
Enoch, it does not mean that St. John copied from 
Enoch, but that both were teaching the same uni- 
versal truths received from the same divine Progen- 
itor. 

In the Bible much prominence is given to the 
word blood and "The blood of the Lamb which was 
slain from the foundation of the world." This refers 
to the force of the Red Ray, which is the life-blood 
of humanity, predominating as it does at the begin- 
ning of every sub-race, and thus running through 
and permeating the whole Root Race. Those 
"which came out of great tribulation, and have 
washed their robes and made them white in the 
blood of the Lamb" * are the ones who have learned 
the lessons of the Red Ray — the lessons of the vital 
life-force — and have thus washed their garments 
(body) white and pure in the stream of living spir- 

» Revelation VII, 13-14. 



A Brief Outline of Evolution 191 

itual force. They are those who have fought the 
good fight and are crowned victors, ready to take 
up the lessons of the next dominant Ray. Only by 
evolution through all that pertains to the Red Ray 
(spiritual life- force of the Soul — its blood, so to 
speak) can humanity be washed in the blood of the 
Lamb and be redeemed. 

Certain texts in the Bible regarding blood which 
which are repulsive 1 and inhuman in their exoteric 
meaning, if looked at in the light of the above ex- 
planation, at once take on a new significance. Even 
that most abused and revolting hymn — 

"There is a fountain filled with blood 
■ Drawn from Emmanuel's veins, 
And sinners plunge beneath that flood 
Loose all their guilty stains" 

becomes quite comprehensible when viewed from 
this standpoint. You have no real spiritual life in 
you until you have correlated with the higher as- 
pect of the Red Ray which is, indeed, the Blood of 
The Christ. 



1 "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, 
jre have no life in you." — St. John VI, 53-55. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE LAW. 

"Love is the fulfilling of the law." Romans, 
XIII. 10. 

"Study the hearts of men, that you may know 
what is that world in which you live and of 
which you will be a part. Regard the constantly 
changing and moving life which surrounds you, 
for it is formed by the hearts of men ; and as you 
learn to understand their constitution and mean- 
ing, you will by degrees be able to read the larger 
word of life (Law)." — Light on the Path, Rule 12. 

All life is law. There is but one law, Love. All 
life and all law is vibration. Hence the Law of Love 
must manifest through the whole gamut of vibration, 
becoming thus both the Law and the fulfilling of 
the Law. 

When God (Love, Law) sent His only begotten Son 
(the Light) to earth, there shot forth a great shaft of 
living fire, vibrant with creative force, into the dark- 
ness (the germs of unmanifested life) where at once 
a cyclic motion was begun in every atom, and all 
things began their cyclic evolution — worlds, creatures, 
atoms, each with its own innate potency awakened 
to activity by the light, 1 the Spirit or Breath which 
moved on the face of the waters. Some faint concep- 
tion of how this ray of force cleaves the darkness can 
be gathered by watching a skyrocket shooting up into 
the blackness of the night. For some distance it is 
apparently a solid shaft of fire, yet in reality every 
particle is in rapid cyclic vibration; every molecule 
is swirling at a high rate, and only because of this 
vibratory force is the rocket propelled onward. The 

^See Chapter XXIV. 



The Law 193 

law followed by the tiny atoms of fire in the path of 
the rocket is the same law that governs worlds, planets, 
suns and systems. Each turns around its own axis, 
yet all continue upon their own appointed paths upward 
and onward into new regions. While each turns upon 
its own axis and circles around its own sun, still the 
whole universe is being propelled onward through 
space, changing conditions through which it passes 
and by the very force of its cyclic vibration setting all 
it contacts into a motion of its own. It is this great 
Law, Divine Love, which creates all things and holds 
them to their appointed paths, that they may evolve 
their germs of good and transmute their germs of evil, 
for evil is but opposition to the Law. 

The Light is the first-born and only begotten Son 
of God for it is the first expression of God-force or 
Love to manifest, just as terrestrial light is the primeval 
manifestations of our visible sun — and light includes 
within itself all vibrations. Just as the rays of the sun 
start the seed to growing in the earth and ultimately 
draw back again the force of the perfected tree, so 
the only begotten Son of God, through Love, both 
plants the seed of Immortality in earth conditions, 
matures it and brings it to perfection, that it may be 
indrawn into the Father. 

The Law manifests in seven major aspects: (1) 
Order, (2) Compensation, (3) Cause and Effect or 
Karma, (4) Vibration, (5) Cycles or Periodicity, (6) 
Polarity, and (7) Balance or Poise. No one aspect 
manifests alone, but while each may predominate in 
turn all the others manifest at the same time as 
subordinate factors. 

(1) Order. Not a grain of sand blown by the wind 
on the seashore but is following the Law as order, for 
the wind acts as the servant of the Law, there being no 



194 The Voice of I sis 

such thing as chance. Everything in life comes in or- 
derly sequence. Nothing can come into your life out- 
side of this law. There is always a place and a time 
for everything and a reason why it comes. It is ac- 
cording to the Law as orderly sequence. Everything 
is brought to you at just the right time and place to 
bring to you the help or the lesson needed to take 
your next step. All comes to you through Divine 
Love. 

(2) Compensation. The Law works as compensa- 
tion in that in every experience, be it painful or other- 
wise, there is a compensating power to be gained or 
a reward which is well worth the suffering necessary 
to build it into Soul-growth. This is also Love. "A 
woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her 
hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the 
child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy 
that a man is born into the world." 1 In the lower 
forms of life when an eye, for instance, is needed, it 
is gradually developed by the extreme sensitiveness 
acquired by the repeated stimulations given to the 
nerves of a certain part by the continual bumping of 
the organism into objects which it cannot see to avoid. 
The compensation is an organ of sight. 

(3) Cause and Effect or Karma. Inextricably 
blended with the Law as Compensation is that aspect 
known as Karma. That is, effects of causes set up in 
previous times or former lives are brought to you in 
orderly sequence to be worked out, and in turn to set 
up fresh causes. The great point to understand in 
this manifestation of the Law is that Karma is neither 
a reward nor a punishment for past deeds — and still 
less is it an avenging Nemesis remorselessly exacting 
"an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth" — but is 

->~s7. John XVI., 21. 



The Law 195 

the effect of causes in the sense that it brings to the 
Soul the opportunity to learn certain lessons which it 
has not learned in a past life, hence which the Law 
of Love brings to it through this manifestation that it 
may gain the Soul-quality needed for further progress. 

(4) Vibration. All the events which are brought 
into your life in orderly sequence with the intention of 
compensating you are brought through the aspect of 
cause and effect by the Law as Vibration. This 
teaches you to correlate and attune yourself to the 
infinite vibrations of Divine Harmony so that through 
the Law as Vibration the evil or inharmonious aspects 
of life may be dissipated and the rhythm of all life 
be attuned to the Infinite. 

(5) Cycles or Periodicity. There can be no con- 
cept of life outside of or apart from vibration, and all 
vibration is cyclic. Everything manifests in cycles 
from the sprouting of the tiniest blade of grass, its 
fruition and decay to the times and seasons of suns 
and systems (manvantaras and pralayas). Every event 
is governed by cycles, a period of activity, a period of 
rest, corresponding to the downward and upward 
sweep of manifestation and obscuration or the out- 
breathing and inbreathing of the Great Breath of 
Brahm. The life of each individual is also governed 
by cycles within cycles. All students notice periods of 
great spiritual uplift followed by periods of depression 
and deadness. These extremes can only be overcome 
by a knowledge of the Law as Periodicity or Cycles. 
When the period of depression comes balance it with 
the force received during the exaltation. Recognize 
that it is the period of inbreathing, the time to indraw 
and digest the lessons of the active period. Only thus 
can Balance or Poise be attained. 



196 The Voice of I sis 

(6) Polarity. Until all the aspects of the Law have 
been brought into perfect polarity and attuned 
to the divine rhythm of the great Law of Love, Polarity 
is broken up into many lesser polarities which manifest 
under the Law of Opposites, good and evil, light and 
darkness, male and female, etc. If we break a magnet 
into a thousand pieces each piece will have its positive 
and negative pole, but its power will be but a faint 
reflection of the power manifested in the one. When 
true Polarity is attained all will be in perfect harmony 
with the positive pole of Divine Love, the negative 
pole of human love reaching up unwaveringly and 
merging itself into that Love, and all the forces inter- 
acting in perfect rhythm from pole to pole. The 
polarity of the Law has literally been broken and sep- 
arated into its various aspects instead of manifesting 
in its entirety. Man through his disobedience has 
broken the Law, yet he must become one with the 
Law, or the Hammer of Thor will break him in pieces. 
Just as a ray of white light in passing through a 
prism is broken up into its seven aspects or colors, each 
manifesting an individual force, so the Law of Love 
in passing through the dense darkness of physical life 
is broken up and deflected so that its seven aspects 
work individually, bringing about chaotic conditions. 
If we isolate the red ray, at one extreme of the solar 
spectrum, its effect would be heat and over-excitement 
tending toward feverish and inflammatory conditions, 
with little illuminating power. At the other extreme 
of the spectrum the action of the violet ray would be to 
kill low forms of life — both bacterial and organized 
cell life — and in higher forms to cause disorganiza- 
tion and insanity. And each of the other color rays 
has been found to have its own special action which 
when separated from the others is inimical to man; 






The Law 197 

but each 'hen used with wisdom or synthesised into 
white light contains a quality of helpfulness. In fact, 
these various aspects are the forces, each with its own 
individual work to do, alluded to as the "seven Sons 
of Fohat" or the seven differing manifestations of 
Force, all of them contained within the one white 
light of Divinity. Only when these seven Sons are 
united in their parent ray can there be light, for while 
separated they manifest color rather than light. So it 
is with the Law of Divine Love. When the Law is 
broken and its differing aspects strive to work indi- 
vidually, as they, do in this world of effects, there is con- 
fusion, darkness and a turning away from God or 
a manifesting of the opposite pole of Good, evil. But 
in reality this is only a lack of positive polarization. 

(7) Balance or Poise. The heart of these various 
activities of the Law is Balance or Poise. For only 
when Poise is attained or that center where vibration 
is so rapid as to be peace can all the aspects of the 
Law be synthesised and perfected. 

All temptations met with on the Path come through 
the various aspects of Love, even Jesus in the wilder- 
ness, being obliged to face and conquer the love of 
power, dominion and ambition. 1 On earth we see Love 
manifesting as love of gold, love of power, love of 
self, love of pleasure, love of animal gratification and 
so forth, all perverted or negative polarizations of 
Divine Love. Divine Love and human love are often 
thought of as quite separate while in reality they are 
but opposite poles of the One Force. There is no 
manifestation of the Law on earth capable of touching 
the depths, or reaching the heights in its cyclic sweep 
as Polarity or human love when not wedded to Wis- 
dom. Through Love perverted has man touched the 

'5(. Matthew IV., 1-11. 



198 The Voice of I sis 

depths of degradation, yet because Love is the Divine 
Law, One from the beginning, it must forever sweep 
upward and onward, and like a mighty whirlwind 
gather up all it touches. In its journey back to 
its source Love gathers up and synthesises its seven 
manifestations and thus fulfills the whole Law of Being. 
"God is Love" and God so loved the world that He 
sent His only begotten Son (Light or Love made mani- 
fest) to descend into the darkness of the unmanifested 
mass of substance (matter) that out of it Love might 
work the fulfillment of the Law. From the earliest 
dawn of creative thought to the present moment has 
Love thus worked its way up through matter. 

Many say that before Jesus came there was but 
the thundering of the inexorable Law of the Old Testa- 
ment or what the Hindus call Karma, but that Jesus 
came to substitute for the Law the glad tidings of 
redemption through Love. But Jesus Himself says: 
"I came not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it." The 
Law which we are wont to call inexorable justice in 
reality could be neither just nor inexorable were 
Love left out, for Love is the one and only reality 
which endures from eternity to eternity. Hence Jesus 
the perfected man did not come to do away with the 
Law but to straighten out man's misconceptions of it; 
to emphasize the fact that justice becomes injustice and 
cruelty when Love is left out; that Law is Love, and 
that which we look upon as an awful inexorable pun- 
ishment is in reality but the force of Love striving to 
counteract man's disobedience to the Law and lead 
him back into the path where Love alone can redeem. 
Hence the glad tidings of Jesus were simply to point 
out to the world that Love is the fulfillment of the 
Law ; is the recognition that the Law is Love, and that 
only through Love can it be fulfilled. There can be no 



The Law 199 

punishment, injustice or fear for those who recognize 
and live at one with the Law of Love. 

A careful analysis will show that every test, trial 
or temptation is brought about through the nega- 
tive polarization of Love, by a breaking up of the 
Law, a refusing to find balance and a consequent 
revolving around an individual center, a getting out 
of harmony with that which keeps all things in their 
appointed paths. This negative polarization is the 
cause of so many unhappy marriages. Man feels the 
stirring of the Divine Love-force within, pushing his 
whole nature onward toward God-consciousness, and 
instead of at once polarizing himself to this Divine 
Love he often seeks to polarize himself to some human 
love which the Law does not bring to him and thereby 
forces both himself and that other out of harmony 
with the Law. And sooner or later the Divine Fire in 
both atoms must die out and like burned out cinders 
they fall back to earth filled with disappointment, sor- 
row and coldness. He fails to realize that just as he 
focuses his consciousness upon the positive pole, all 
that belongs to him — his own, the little swirling love- 
atom that is his earthly complement — must come to 
him as he becomes one with the Law, for its lawful 
place is by his side and without its help he could not 
fulfill the Law of Love. 

Heretofore man has been misapplying the Law and 
placing himself under its negative aspect — evil — and 
through the ensuing suffering has been learning to 
lift up his eyes afar off and long for his Father's 
home. But the time will come when man must bal- 
ance the effect of the negative aspect — suffering — by 
manifesting under the positive aspect — Love — and reap 
his reward. The suffering may be the means of turn- 
ing man God-ward, but the ultimate knowing of God 



200 The Voice of his 

can only come through Love. The negative aspect of 
Divine Love has evolved up through humanity until 
the turning point was reached, and now the positive 
aspect must come into manifestation. Jesus outlined to 
the world a grander conception of the Divine Law in 
what is known as the New Dispensation, but it takes 
very little thought to realize that this New Dispensa- 
tion has never yet manifested in humanity as a whole ; 
it has never been more than a grand ideal to which 
only a few isolated examples have attained. This 
New Dispensation can never be realized until man 
begins to polarize his whole life to Divine Love and 
manifest its positive or good aspect as he has its 
negative or evil, thus gaining perfect equilibrium. 

This is the esoteric meaning of the injunction, "Seek 
ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness ; 
and all these things shall be added unto you." In 
other words when you have polarized all your life and 
love to Divine Love and when you are living thus 
harmonized to your proper place in the stream all 
that is yours must be swept onward with you. As 
long as you refuse to understand the Law and think 
of yourself as an atom separated from the mass or 
pick out for yourself another atom to revolve around 
you are destined to remain in the negative polarization 
and fall to earth again and again, as do the sparks 
in the sky-rocket which have lost their oneness with 
its fiery heart. 

"Men loved darkness rather than light, because 
their deeds were evil." Their deeds may not be 
absolutely wicked but they tend away from the positive 
pole of Light (Divine Love) and hence must mani- 
fest darkness rather than light. The lesson to be 
learned is that you do not have to seek for something 
afar off or foreign to your nature, for you are living 



The Law 201 

in a world of love, created by a Love which embraces 
every atom in the universe in its fiery Heart; that you 
will suffer until you learn to desire the Light; that 
Light (Love) is turned into darkness as long as it is 
broken up into lesser loves. There is but one way, 
the way of The Christ, the only begotten Son (the 
Light) which is the way, the truth and the life. You 
must deliberately turn your heart toward Divine Love 
and realize that the instant you thus turn you are 
vibrating with the stream and must of necessity be 
swept onward and upward and must draw with you 
every other atom that is in any way harmonized to 
you. Then help, strength, power, comradeship and 
love must come to you because you are harmonized 
to the stream of Divine Love which is ever working 
toward perfection. You suffer only as you get out of 
harmony with the Law by passing it through the prism 
of your lower personality and hence producing various 
colors rather than light. 

The world is struggling in the stream. The rocket 
has been shot from its mortar and cleaves the darkness 
in one swirling stream of fiery particles. Many in 
the stream know not whither they are bound, but 
they are in the fiery current. They whirl round and 
round, each little Soul a vortex of fire, each cycle of 
each spark seeming to be a complete universe shutting 
out all else, apparently vibrating to some force whose 
center is within the atom, yet in reality all are being 
drawn onward and upward in Love in a straight line 
back to the source whence they came, as the fire and 
force of the rocket are drawn to their source, the 
sun — the storehouse of both light and force — while 
that which belongs to earth — the stick and the ashes — 
falls back to earth. Love fulfills the Law for each 
atom, for each Soul. The lessons of each are brought 



202 TJie Voice of his 

by Love. Only the hearts that are cold and dead to 
Divine Love and persistently seek some human polar- 
ization fall back to earth as cinders, those that are 
alive and glowing sweep ever on. 

As you go out into the world you must dwell in 
this current of Divine Love, and as you feel its force 
thrilling through you know well that its center is 
not in the little puny life round which you revolve, but 
in the Heart of the One Life; that the main lesson is 
not that you find satisfaction in being in the stream, but 
that you lend the fire in your heart toward propelling 
the rocket ever higher, and that fire within must be 
the indwelling Christ-force. The positive pole cannot 
manifest without the negative pole ; the Divine cannot 
manifest without stirring up earth conditions. Your 
temptations will come through Love ; that which is 
purest will seem to stir up the most impurity; that 
which is Divine will bring sorrow and discourage- 
ment. How then shall you become one with the 
Law? By polarizing your love to Divine Love, by 
merging your spark into the heart of the vortex where 
all is rest and harmony and peace. 

This is the work of this Order, and this is your 
work. You cannot expect the world to attain peace 
and love unless you manifest peace and love, not 
merely to one atom, but to all. You must demon- 
strate your ability to stand still amid the swirling 
currents of life and hold on to the center of the 
whirlwind, the Heart of Love. Recognize that the 
turbulence and disasters and sufferings are but the 
results of the outpourings of Divine Love ; that they 
come not as karmic retribution but that through the 
vibrations of Love the Law may be fulfilled. You 
must lend your love to make this Order a great fiery 
stream of Divine Love that shall draw to it and make 



The Law 203 

glowing all the little fiery hearts that are following 
crooked paths and growing cold and falling back into 
the darkness. Your mission is to point out how that 
which is apparently evil can be polarized to good, 
how discouragement can be turned into ardor, how 
suffering can be turned to joy. 

Study the lessons in the Book of Life. On every 
page will you find the word Love. Many pages may 
be clouded and obscured, many may be almost obliter- 
ated with tears, many may be besmirched with mire, 
but because you have been drawn into this fiery 
stream of Divine Love you will have the power to 
decipher the pages, to trace the story of the Love that 
has been guiding you through all the darkened, sor- 
rowful pages. You can show the stricken ones and 
the heart-hungry that they are still in the stream; 
that it is Love that is leading and guiding them; 
that the Law is whirling them round and round only 
to bring them and theirs back to God; that there are 
other pages in the book, pure and unsullied, whereon 
they may learn to write their names. 



CHAPTER XV. 

WORLD CHAINS. 

"Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, 
and all the host of them. And on the seventh day 
God ended his work which he had made." — 
Genesis, II, 1-2. 

"Whirling, glowing ether, fluidic but cohesive, 
throwing off sparks. Encountering moist air it sends 
up clouds of vapor in its rapid motion. The Great 
Mother sends out her breath to blow cool and moist 
upon the fiery offshoots of the Father. Little by little 
it gathers density until the children suited to its 
condition begin to move in its fiery heart like tiny 
flames, yet flames that have life and independent 
motion. All life is now 'gaseous light.' The spirits 
of the gases hover over the glowing vapory mass. 
They fan it with their wings that it may cool and 
harden. Within the womb of the World Mother 
an infant globe slowly takes form. At last upon this 
whirling sphere there descends, in one great rush, the 
spirits of the Great Ones destined to prepare this 
ethereal dwelling place for humanity. These are men 
indeed, MEN, Divine Men, Manus, who reached 
their godlike state on former chains of worlds. They 
begin their work on the first and earliest globe of this 
chain in its most ethereal condition. Their work is 
to inform and prepare this life-essence for future use. 

"They blow their cool breath upon the glowing 
vapory globe and lo ! it solidifies into the prototypes 
of that which becomes rock and mineral, imprisoning 
the Spirit of Life. Their life blood becomes currents 
of living force. They hover over the face of the 



World Chains 205 

Great Deep. Into the waters they breathe their life 
breath and the waters are filled with innumerable 
living forms. From the waters and the cooling rocks 
a great mist arises. 1 It is the Spirit or life-element 
of the coming humanity. It separates into masses. 
They take form and become ethereal beings floating 
like clouds over the still ethereal planet. Through all 
this first Round the Creators are engaged in pre- 
paring the earth, informing the prototypes of that 
which is to be. It is the breath of their nostrils, the 
blood-stream of their life forces that is both trans- 
forming and reappearing in the life of the elements. 
"Ere the earliest types are ready to take on denser 
ethereal forms they pass into a sleep, which in this 
early stage is but a slight cooling down of the globe. 
Then a new day dawns, the Second Round. A new 
form of life appears, the vegetable. Once more must 
the Parents of the Race guide the pure but as yet 
incorporeal beings, the Second Race, and teach them 
how to inform the planet. The Manus must enter, 
through the breath of their nostrils, into the forma- 
tion of the new globe. They must permeate the min- 
eral to give it consciousness and penetrate the vege- 
table, very like the water of the ocean flowing through 
coral or some spongy substance, leaving behind its 
informing principle. As yet humanity is globular and 
ethereal, but must become acquainted with the globe 
on which it dwells. It becomes the mineral, the stone, 
the water, the air. The oceans are of carbonic acid, 
and the air is saturated with its evaporation. Gigantic 
trees form from the carboniferous exhalations of the 
early Races. The immense coal beds were thus cre- 
ated by the informing Beings, the Progenitors of the 
coming humanity. 

1 See Genesis II., 6. 



206 The Voice of Isis 

"After a pralayic night of short duration they are 
ready for a new globe ; they awaken to a new condi- 
tion, the Third Round. Different strata have been 
formed. The earth's crust has formed over the min- 
erals and the giant trees. Now gigantic reptiles and 
beasts roam the earth, with bodies and functions 
adapted to the existing conditions. Humanity is not 
yet ready to take solid form. 

"In the Fourth Round humanity falls into genera- 
tion ; is endowed with mind by the Sons of Mind. 
God breathes into man's nostrils the breath of life and 
he becomes a living Soul. As humanity reaches the 
lowest point of this Fourth Round, the human body 
solidifies. The spiritual powers and psychic faculties 
are now limited and all but lost in the dense physical 
envelope ; mind begins to develop. From this point 
onward man must work out his own redemption, to- 
gether with that of the earth. Up to this time his 
evolution and that of the earth had been guided and 
directed by the Manus or the Rishis, the Progenitors 
of all that lives and breathes on Earth." 

The above is an extract from a cryptic lesson given 
by the Master to the Order explaining the formation 
of a World Chain, but which the limits of this lesson 
are far too short to fully explain. However, although 
there has been much speculation and much confusion 
in the minds of students concerning these World 
Chains, we will endeavor to explain herein only certain 
of their most practical phases, for a complete under- 
standing of the subject belongs to the Mysteries of 
the higher Initiation. 

Just as man's body is the lowest expression of his 
seven-fold constitution, so is each visible planet but 
the lowest, densest aspect of a seven-fold Chain, called 
by occultists a "World Chain." A World Chain is 



World Chains 207 

composed of seven globes of differing states of matter 
and consciousness, all existing at the same time and 
all interpenetrating. The globes of any one Chain 
must not be identified with the visible planets, for 
only one globe of each Chain is visible, each physically 
visible planet being the physical globe of its own 
Chain, just as the Earth is the physical globe of the 
Earth Chain. The other six globes of each Chain are 
composed of finer and more ethereal states of matter 
to which our physical senses do not respond. They are 
invisible and hence to us apparently do not exist. 

In its descent (involution) into physical manifesta- 
tion life appears successively on each of the seven 
globes during one day-period called a Round, seven 
of such day-periods or Rounds being required to com- 
plete the cycle of manifestation (involution-turning 
point — evolution). "Our Earth, as the (now) visible 
representative of its superior fellow-globes, . . . 
has to live, as have the others, through seven Rounds. 
During the first three, it forms and consolidates ; 
during the fourth (our present Round), it settles and 
hardens ; during the last three, it gradually returns to 
its first ethereal form ; it is spiritualized, so to say." x 

It may appear as though the evolving lives stepped 
from globe to globe of the Chain, but in reality they 
merely evolve into new states of matter and conscious- 
ness. A new globe or plane of consciousness mani- 
fests when the consciousness evolved in the preceding 
Round can no longer express itself on the old globe. 
In passing from globe to globe a new principle is 
developed on each. Man can penetrate into the con- 
sciousness of the states through which he has passed, 
but can not penetrate into the realms that embody 
principles which he has not yet evolved. As man 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I., 183. 



208 The Voice of Isis 

evolves, his consciousness is born into a new globe 
or state of consciousness, literally born into a new 
world which did not exist for him before, where 
all the familiar things of his daily life and of Nature 
appear in a new and hitherto unsuspected light. This 
is due to an expansion of consciousness which enables 
him to respond to the vibrations of a higher globe, 
enabling him to grasp deeper meanings and under- 
stand teachings which he formerly regarded as mere 
vagaries of unbalanced minds or mystical word pic- 
tures of no practical value. "Cycles and epochs depend 
upon consciousness : we are not here for the first time ; 
the cycles return because we come back into conscious 
existence. Cycles are measured by the consciousness 
of humanity and not by Nature. It is because we are 
the same people as in past epochs that these events 
occur to us." x 

Undeveloped man responds chiefly to the vibrations 
of the physical globe, those things which he can see, 
hear, taste, handle, etc., and can not comprehend or 
function in the globes belonging to the psychic- and 
spiritual-planes. Many so live in and for the grati- 
fication of their animal appetites, desires and passions 
that although they are living on earth they are 
dwelling in the World of Desire or the globe em- 
bodying the desire-principle, where desire reigns su- 
preme. For such, every thought, act and experience 
of life is interpreted from the standpoint of animal 
desire. Others dwell so completely in the mental 
world that the desire world, and even the physical 
world, has little power over them. Many function in 
a dream world, the astral envelope of the physical 
earth, in which the physical, desire and mental worlds 
are all reflected. Some are able to reach up into the 

l Ibid, Vol. Ill, 563. 



World Chains 209 

Soul World and receive their mystic Soul birth, while 
a few receive their birth into the Spiritual World 
where their consciousness becomes one with their 
Father-in-heaven. The phenomenon of true "conver- 
sion" is but the birth of the consciousness into the 
Soul globe or plane. The majority of humanity, how- 
ever, function in the three lower worlds (physical, 
mental, desire) at the same time or vibrate from one 
to the other. The mental world, however, has two 
aspects, a high and a low, and since man is endowed 
with free-will, he can chain mind to the lower worlds 
and make of this great gift but a servant to gratify 
desire and intensify physical life, or he can use his gift 
of mind to reach up into the higher worlds of Soul 
and Spirit. Man must ultimately function and gain 
experience on all seven globes at the same time, check- 
ing up, balancing and perfecting the experience of 
one by that gained on the others, thus rounding out 
his seven-fold nature into the Real Man. Only thus 
can he gain Mastery over the portion of goods given 
him by his Father-in-heaven. 

What is referred to in the above quotation as taking 
place in each Round is the ultimate characteristic 
evolved while the life-wave was passing around the 
Chain of seven globes during that Round, and what 
is referred to as "humanity" or "man" is, of course, 
not man as we know him today, but stages in the 
involution or descent into matter of that which be- 
came man at the middle point of the Third Race of 
the present Fourth Round. During the First Round 
the center of the stage of action was occupied by the 
mineral kingdom; the mineral dominated the entire 
Chain, reaching its greatest density on the fourth 
globe. In the rocks formed during that period science 
finds no traces of either vegetable or animal forms. 



210 The Voice of his 

During the Second Round the vegetable kingdom 
occupied the center of the stage and dominated the 
Earth Chain, the mineral kingdom being subservient. 
It was upon the fourth globe of that Round that 
giant vegetation flourished in an atmosphere of car- 
bonic acid gas. The remains of that vegetation are 
still preserved to us in the form of coal. The rocks 
formed during and after that period record the char- 
acteristics of the vegetation but no trace of animal 
life, for the animals had not yet taken on or descended 
into solid physical form. During the Third Round 
animal life dominated the globe in the form of giant 
reptiles and monstrous animals whose remains science 
has found preserved in many places. During this 
period both mineral and vegetable kingdoms were 
subservient to the animal. The rocks of that time 
contain traces of both vegetable and animal life but 
not of man, for he was still astral or super-physical. 
During this present Fourth Round it is man who 
descends to the physical-plane and dominates the globe 
through the power of mind, all the lower kingdoms 
being subservient to him. 

Since man is the microcosm of the macrocosm, in 
his spiritual evolution he must pass through stages 
analogous both to his own physical evolution and 
that of the planet, just as during his inter-uterine life 
he passes through the evolutionary stages of the early 
Races — vegetative, animal, human. The first three 
Rounds would be represented in man's spiritual evo- 
lution by the innocence of ignorance. During this 
period he goes on his way actively doing neither good 
nor evil, vegetating, indifferent to the higher ideals 
yet not groveling in the lowest. Persons in this stage 
take life as they find it, with little thought as to its 
significance or its deeper problems. They are happy 



World Chains 211 

and carefree, neither very good nor very bad — average 
good natured persons with whom the world goes well 
and who experience little sorrow or suffering. There 
must come a time, however, when, like the planet, the 
evolutionary urge involves them in still deeper, denser 
conditions. Their carefree condition changes. Since 
they pay little attention to the higher ideals of life 
and concentrate all their efforts on physical gratifica- 
tion, they come to live more and more in their animal 
natures. They become carried away with animal de- 
sires, with the love of money for the gratification of 
creature comforts, with ambition, with great selfish- 
ness resulting in extreme cruelty to their brother men. 
All these conditions gradually plunge them into the 
denser animal realm where, like the immense animals 
that roamed the earth during the Third Round, they 
prey upon one another, living only to enhance and 
gratify their animal natures and prolong their animal 
pleasures. 

In this period of spiritual growth the animal pas- 
sions dominate. Man now seeks to escape sorrow 
and suffering through indulgence in animal desire. 
In obeying the inner urge toward harmony (happi- 
ness) he madly plunges into all manner of animal 
excesses and self-indulgences with little regard for 
the rights of others ; but freedom from suffering still 
eludes him. Ultimately he reaches a point where the 
Real Man begins to control, corresponding to the 
period when man began to dominate the earth. As 
with the planet so with the Race and the individual. 
The vegetative and animal stages lead steadily toward 
a condensation of conditions. Just as the passing of 
the gigantic vegetation of the Second Round added 
to the density of the globe in the form of coal and the 
enormous animals of the Third Round by their de- 



212 The Voice of I sis 

posits of bone, so during the corresponding periods 
of his evolution has man helped to create for himself 
denser physical conditions, karmic conditions of suf- 
fering and sorrow which he must experience and 
redeem. 

Little by little, through sorrow and suffering, he 
awakes to the realities of life. Sorrow and suffering 
are to man what matter is to Spirit, the sinking into 
the densest and most limiting conditions of expression. 
And the object is the same, i. e. t for Spirit, to gain 
experience in physical conditions and thereby redeem 
matter; for man, to gain his Soul experience and 
thereby redeem the causes in the world which produce 
sorrow and suffering, namely sin and disobedience, as 
well as to redeem the matter in which he clothes him- 
self. Hence, while the Law as Karma will bring to 
all the suffering they have earned, at the same time as 
they conquer they become redeemers for the Race, for 
they can not conquer for themselves alone. They 
have been born from the world of thoughtless action 
into the realm corresponding to the period when man 
was endowed with mind. They have begun to respond 
to their Higher Mind. Once having reached this 
point they can go no more back. Life no longer flows 
smoothly. They can no longer be thoughtless and 
carefree, for they must henceforth take in their own 
hands the working out of the great problems of their 
spiritual lives, just as man at the corresponding stage 
took over the guidance of his physical life. They 
must seek for themselves the solution of life's 
problems. 

When you have reached this stage you have entered 
the Fourth Degree 1 of humanity where you con- 
sciously take up the work of spiritual regeneration. 

1 See Chapter III. 



World Chains 213 

In this Degree you consciously start out upon the Path 
and must conquer all the kingdoms below you, both in 
yourself and in the world. All who are interested in 
these teachings, for example, have reached this point. 
And to you we will say that you are not mere crea- 
tures of impulse, driven hither and thither by a relent- 
less fate, but are children of your Father-in-heaven. 
You have reached your majority and are being tested. 
You are encouraged to take up the great work of your 
own redemption. Your guidance is now no longer that 
given a schoolboy, but rather the supervision of a 
loving parent over one who must of his own free-will 
follow the principles taught by that parent. It is 
comforting, however, to realize that you have this 
power to walk alone or you would not be where you 
are today. If you were still a child in spiritual 
leading-strings the great problems of life would not 
confront you, for the Law of Divine Love brings to 
the Soul only such problems as it has the strength 
to meet and conquer. Your Heavenly Father would 
not that any perish. Yea, not one sparrow falleth to 
the ground but the Father knoweth. 

Seek then to reach up in consciousness to the Scul 
World, to the globe of Divine Love, a new world in 
which you can dwell if you will. Your Heavenly 
Father has prepared a mansion for you in that world 
which you do not have to pass through the change 
men call death to enter. But you do have to let go 
and cease clinging to the things of the lower worlds, 
for that to which you cling and in which you permit 
your mind to dwell is the world in which you must 
function. You may do your duty in the lower worlds 
and still dwell with your Father in His world of love 
and glory. Realize that He is watching over you 
and that His world envelopes you and will manifest 



214 The Voice of Isis 

to you if you will but open your heart to let it in. 
Like a human parent, but in a degree far transcending 
the human, your Father suffers with you, yet under- 
stands the necessity for you to conquer alone. The 
greatest gift to man is free-will. It must be your 
will to reach out for the guiding hand that is always 
within reach, even in the darkest night, ere you can 
find it. 

All is Law, and all Law is Love. It is the life-essence 
of this Law — The Christ-force — which has overcome 
the world or which has brought about the physical 
evolution of the planet. Hence it must also bring 
about your spiritual evolution and bring to perfection 
all who choose to work in harmony with The Christ. 
Nothing can overwhelm you if you make this great 
truth the foundation on which you build your life. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

PURITY. 

"What? know ye not that your body is the 
temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which 
ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For 
ye are bought with a price : therefore glorify God 
in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 
— / Corinthians, VI 19, 20. 

Your body is the Temple of the Living God. It is 
your duty to see that in every way it is kept a fit 
dwelling-place for the God within. The chief requisite 
for this is absolute purity of body, mind and heart. 
When we speak of a Temple it naturally suggests the 
idea of sacredness, hence you should not only look 
upon your body as something to be kept clean and 
wholesome and in perfect health and strength that 
it may be a fit instrument, but you should also sanctify 
it and keep it holy and undented. Nothing must be 
allowed to enter it, either as food or drink, that will 
injure it, make it unhealthy or lessen your control 
over it. 

This animal body of yours has certain desires and 
tendencies which are perfectly natural to it, just as 
they are to any animal, but since you, the Immortal 
Self, are dwelling in it, you, the Immortal Self must 
control the animal with its desires and tendencies, and 
make it subservient to the Law of Being. The lower 
animals — having no individualized spark of the Divine 
dwelling in them — receive their touch with the Divine 
through a Group-soul which guides the evolution of 
each particular species collectively, through instinct. 
Hence the animals follow their natural tendencies 



216 The Voice of I sis 

when not perverted by contact with man, and these 
tendencies, not being perverted, are necessarily right 
and proper, but man having a higher guidance than 
instinct must control the animal tendencies instead of 
being controlled by them. 

No natural function of the body but is pure and 
wholesome when used for its proper purpose. No 
natural act is, of itself, impure. It becomes impure 
only through impure thoughts concerning it. The 
animal can follow only its normal instincts but you, by 
debasing your God-given intelligence, have the power 
to sink lower than the beasts, or by claiming your 
birthright and asserting your manhood, to rise far 
above them. 

Love in its highest expression is the one power 
which you possess in common with the gods. It is 
a divine force of attraction which seeks equilibrium 
in the union of the masculine and feminine expres- 
sions of the Divine. It is a natural force expressing it- 
self in perfect purity on all planes, spiritual, mental 
and physical. When it is confined to the physical-plane 
you are apt to lose control of it, and the animal body, 
through which it is expressed physically, is left to 
follow its own devices. Thus the animal perverts this 
divine force, and by the aid of intellect devises ab- 
normal ways of gratifying its appetites instead of 
expressing the pure love of a spiritual being for its 
mate. What was Divine Love becomes debased and 
impure, the body is defiled and the Temple of the 
Living God desecrated. 

Not alone impure acts but also impure thoughts, 
even if only subconsciously held, are a source of defile- 
ment. Science has demonstrated that thoughts are 
things, forces which create ethereal forms that attach 
themselves to their creators seeking expression through 



Purity 217 

their bodies. The science of psychology (the science 
of the mind) teaches that every thought tends to ex- 
press itself in a bodily act, and does so express itself 
unless counteracted by a stronger thought of opposite 
character. Therefore your impure or evil acts are 
not committed because some devil stands at your elbow 
urging you to do the impure or evil deed, but you 
yourself are responsible, for you have created the 
impure thought-forms that are but striving to express 
themselves through their creators. Or you have so 
attuned your mind to impurity that the impure 
thought-forms created by others are drawn to you. 
The normal animal passions when excited and inflamed 
by impure thoughts find abnormal, and necessarily 
impure, expressions. The whole problem rests upon 
your ability to purify your thoughts concerning all 
the forces and functions of your bodies. Learn that 
there is no natural function of your body that is 
not normal and right if put to its proper use and 
governed by pure thoughts. 

"Thou shall not let thy senses make a playground of 
thy mind." x 

To keep the thoughts pure you must fight every 
impure thought the instant it appears. Learn to 
take an interest in pure things and fill your mind 
with thoughts concerning them. Determinately con- 
quer the tendency to investigate impurity. Do not be 
always hovering on the borderland of suggestion, see- 
ing in every word and look some hidden suggestion 
of impurity. Expend as much energy and take as 
much interest looking for Pearls of Purity as is gen- 
erally spent in seeking for the impure ; for what ye 
seek ye shall surely find. Determine not to entertain 
an impure thought any more than an impure visitor 

1 The Voice ef the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment III. 



218 The Voice of Isis 

would be entertained in the bosom of your family. 
By interesting yourself in purity and filling your mind 
with pure thoughts you cut off the supply of life 
and energy from the impure thought-forms and, if 
you persistently create their opposites, after a fierce 
struggle for life, they will soon cease to trouble you, 
for you have created thought-forms of purity which 
will transmute the impure, and will and must express 
themselves in pure thoughts and actions. These pure 
creations will become the Warrior who fights for 
you. Often it is a great surprise to find that the thing 
you looked upon as such a dire temptation a short 
time ago will now scarce attract a passing glance. 
You have conquered it. 

This divine creative force of Love, which is the 
link that unites you with God, finds its greatest 
earthly expression in the sex-forces. It also has a 
corresponding expression on all planes, spiritual, 
mental and physical. The sex-forces are always cre- 
ative and cannot be brought into operation without a 
definite creation on all planes, their higher aspects 
creating upon the higher planes, their lower upon 
the physical-plane. The spiritual essence will create 
upon the spiritual-plane ; the mental will create upon 
the mental-plane, following out the patterns set by 
the thought-forms which are fashioned by the desires, 
thus making them conscious living entities which at- 
tach themselves to man ( their creator, express through 
him, and demand that he sustain them. Thus if only 
gross animal thoughts are held at the time the forces 
are used you create gross animal thought-forms which 
drag you down, so that you grow more and more 
animal. But if pure love and high aspirations as for 
a holy sacrament are held at the time, you will be 
able to express more and more clearly the ideal held. 



Purity 219 

rhe physical essence will create upon the physical- 
)lane, but if denied its natural expression on that 
)lane, i. e., the creation of a body in which a 
livine Soul can incarnate, it will still create upon the 
)hysical-plane. Being- perverted from its normal and 
hrown into abnormal channels, it will send its quota 
>f creative energy toward the creation of disease, death 
ind pestiferous plagues, for its natural function is 
:ompletely perverted and that which should have been 
mt to the highest use and which should bring the 
greatest blessing to mankind has now become its curse. 
vVhen the creative life-force is brought into activity 
n purity and love, as it finds embodiment in the lower 
ringdoms it will clothe itself in forms helpful to man, 
>ut since the opposite conditions are too often the rule 
he creative force adds its power to those forms which 
tre antagonistic to and prey upon man. 

These evil things, however, are not a direct crea- 
ion, but are the result of the impure thoughts and 
>erverted creative force of man permeating the at- 
nosphere of the earth and filling its aura with life- 
brce expressing itself through living entities working 
n a reverse way, seeking avenues through which to 
)ring forth evil instead of good in all parts of the 
:arth, even where man has never trod. The entities 
hus created, being man's perverted physical creations, 
nust draw their sustenance from mankind. Just as 
l child draws its life and nourishment from its mother's 
)reast so these unnatural creations must also flourish 
ind in some way draw their life from man's blood 
'blood sucking parasites, cancers and all pathological 
)acteria, for example). Do not blame God for sick- 
less and disease. They are man's creations. 

Humanity as a whole has created these conditions 
for ages, until the aura of the earth is saturated with 



220 The Voice of Isis 

what is known to science as disease breeding germs, 
bacteria, parasites, etc. Scarcely anything you eat or 
come in contact with is free from these enemies to 
human life, making every one born under the flesh 
in bondage to the flesh, as the Bible puts it or, in occult 
parlance, subject to the world's Karma to a greater 
or lesser degree. Nevertheless, although the micro- 
scope shows that the germs of disease are constantly 
entering your body through air, water and food, to 
the pure in heart and mind and body these abnormal 
creations will prove harmless. Thus is literally ful- 
filled the promise "Behold, I give unto you power 
to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the 
power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means 
hurt you." 1 Know well there are no evils created to 
tempt or diseases to harm you but those of man's own 
creation. Since man has thus proved himself a creator 
of evil it is time for him to realize this fact, recognize 
his power and determine to create good instead of evil. 
Cohabitation must never take place except between 
persons legally married to each other. There can be no 
possible exception to this rule. Legally married means 
that the law of the land in which they dwell must 
legalize in the eyes of the world any sexual union. But 
unless the union has already been made in heaven 
through pure love, the physical union cannot bring 
about peace and happiness, for like all true sacraments 
it must be entered into and registered upon all planes. 
Nothing can be gained by breaking the laws of the 
land ; if they are crude or inadequate your effort should 
be to uplift them. Every principle which evolution has 
proved to be for the benefit of mankind must ultimately 
be used for its highest purpose. Cohabitation outside 
the legal married state is but breaking the law and 

*St. Luke X., 19. 



Purity 221 

adding complications to be worked out later in sor- 
row and suffering. Even though the marriage law is 
but a man-made law and is far from perfect, it is 
nevertheless a shadow on earth of the Divine Law, 
the divine Marriage of the Soul. Man's marriage 
laws have many objectionable features, but the 
lesson for humanity to learn is that marriage is a holy 
sacrament, not to be lightly entered into or lightly set 
aside. Hence if through ignorance and perversion 
man degrades this sacrament he will never learn its 
sacredness, especially by ignoring it or refusing to 
bear the consequences of his acts. 

The fundamental teaching of this Order is that 
in every Soul there is a Divine Guidance which, if 
the human personality will listen, will clearly indicate 
what is right and what is wrong. Hence no one is 
forced into an unhappy marriage without going 
against this inner urge ; he either enters it because 
he is blinded by passion, because of a desire for 
worldly position or for some reason other than the 
one great reason, namely, because the Soul speaks 
to its mate in Divine Love. The Law of Divine Love 
will bring to each Soul its true marriage, a union 
in perfect purity on all planes. This according to the 
one life-theory is of course impossible for all ; but since 
reincarnation is a fact, the Soul, through repeated ex- 
periences, learns to follow its Divine Guidance, hence 
will ultimately find its true mate. But they can be 
spiritually as well as physically married to their mates 
only when the old accounts of both have been balanced 
and the old complications set up through the mistakes 
of the past have been worked out. To ignore the les- 
sons necessary to be learned is but to prolong the period 
of separation between the two, for they can never come 
together in perfect purity until each has learned the 



222 The Voice of Isis 

lessons which keep them apart and have found out how 
to fulfill the Law on all planes ; that is, have reached 
a point where nothing but the spiritual attraction or 
true love leads them into a physical marriage. To 
break the Law on any plane by refusing to bear the 
results of your acts simply results in your having to 
come back and take up the same old lessons where you 
left them and continue in them until they are learned. 

The marriage state is the highest and holiest rela- 
tion between man and woman. Anything that detracts 
from its holiness should not be tolerated. The idea 
that it is inherently wrong is an insult to an institution 
which was placed before man as the earthly expression 
of his highest attainment, the union of the Soul with 
the Divine. Until you have grasped at least some- 
thing of the holy reflection on earth of this Divine 
Marriage, your consciousness can never enter into it 
upon the higher planes. Hence if you are not ready 
to enter into this holy sacrament with a realization of 
its sacredness, its purity and the possibility of over- 
coming the vile ideas which the world has cast upon it, 
you would better not swear falsely before God and man 
by taking upon yourself its vows. If mere companion- 
ship or a so-called "spiritual mate" is all that is desired 
that can be attained without physical contact. But mark 
well that mere companionship or "spiritual union" does 
not include the privilege of personal contact or physical 
union. 

It is not the words pronounced by minister, priest, 
or magistrate which bind you, no written documents, 
but the spiritual potencies of the Law which you in- 
voke by your vows and the intent of your Soul in 
making the vows. And it is these forces which will 
demand the fulfillment of the vows, no matter what 
verbal or written contracts to the contrary you may 



Purity 223 

make or what mental reservations you may hold. If you 
refuse to fulfill them in one way you must pay the price 
in another, for you will be free only when the debt is 
fully paid. It makes no difference whether the cere- 
mony be Catholic, Protestant, Mohammedan, Mormon 
or civil. Whatever land you are in and whatever 
law you invoke to bind your Soul is the one with which 
you should comply, for it is the power of one Divine 
Law you invoke no matter what the ceremony em- 
ployed. Whatever law you accept at the time of the 
marriage as a representative of the Divine Law, and 
make your vows accordingly, that is the law that holds 
you. 

There are three parties to the marriage vow, the 
man, the woman and the law of the land. This vow 
can be annulled and withdrawn with the consent of all 
three parties. Also if one of the parties has violated 
the vow, he or she cannot hold the others to it unless 
they choose to overlook the violation and thus in effect 
renew the vow. If, however, one overlooks the viola- 
tion and accepts the resulting conditions let him not 
complain and seek sympathy for his hard lot, for he 
has deliberately chosen that lot and must abide by 
his choice, work out its Karma and learn its resulting 
lessons. 

If man and wife cannot fulfill the vow by living in 
love and harmony, it is far better for their Soul-growth 
to ask the third party — the law of the land — to release 
them from it. For there is nothing more detrimental 
to spiritual advance than nuptial inharmony, because 
of the perpetuation of the inharmony through the 
creative power and because of the inharmonious and 
impure creations brought forth. It is also far better 
for the children of such a union to pass through the 
experience a legal separation of the parents might 



224 The Voice of Isis 

entail than to be brought up in an atmosphere where 
love, trust and understanding were lacking and in- 
harmony reigned. 

When the Laws of God and man have been com- 
plied with, the consummation of the union in pure and 
holy love is a sacrament. 1 Under such conditions, if 
at the time the thoughts are exalted and pure, and 
the creative energy is permitted to function through 
its normal and natural channel, there will be upon 
the spiritual-plane a creation which will correlate with 
the Divine Creative Force and draw to the participants 
a wonderful blessing and help, while upon the mental- 
plane thought-forms of purity will gather as a pro- 
tecting band around the unborn child to ward off all 
inimical and evil influences, and a perfect body should 
result. Also, through the spiritual force drawn upon, 
an advanced Soul may be attracted to the body. If 
the desire is to create the body of a child it should 
be looked upon as a sacred and religious rite; for 
there is nothing more important to the Race than 
the perfecting of the vehicles for its continuance and 
its upliftment. This is far more important than build- 
ing churches, preaching sermons or sending mission- 
aries to the "heathen." The thoughts of both parents 
should be concentrated upon an exact mental picture 
of the body they desire and the creative act should 
be carried out with this ideal in mind, and in the 
greatest purity of thought. Thus there can be created 
a beautiful love-child which will be a blessing and a 
joy throughout life. If a physical body is created when 
it is not wanted it is created by the mere husks of the 
creative force, while the real power of creation is ex- 
pended on other planes in following out whatever 

1 "A sacrament is an outward and visible sign of an inward and 
spiritual grace. " 



Purity 225 

pattern is set by the desires. Since the thoughts were 
not concentrated on the physical-plane to produce a 
perfect body, such a child is robbed, and will naturally 
lack a part of its birthright, the whole Race being 
proportionately defrauded. 

All life comes from the One Life of the Absolute 
and normally should evolve back to God in perfect 
purity and harmony, but instead everything that grows, 
be it herb or animal, has to contend with the malign 
influence of the perverted currents of life-force, the 
result of man's misuse of the creative power. This is 
a literal fulfillment of the curse recorded in Genesis, 1 
"Cursed is the ground 2 for thy sake." The curse was 
not pronounced because of the act of one man and 
woman, nor was it because the Third Race (symbolized 
by Adam and Eve) fell into generation, for the power 
to create was the great gift given to the humanity of 
this globe by the Elohim. With the gift the Divine 
Guidance to use it aright was also given, but as early 
as the latter part of that Race in direct disobedience to 
that Guidance mankind began to abuse and pervert it. 
And humanity has perpetuated that mistake ever since. 
The curse was not pronounced as a punishment, but 
was merely a statement of the natural consequences 
which would follow the use of the creative power in a 
perverted way. "Thorns also and thistles shall it 
bring forth to thee," and also "in sorrow shalt thou 
eat of it all the days of thy life." Even in eating our 
choicest fruits, when partaken of ere they have gained 
the victory (ripened) over the adverse conditions re- 
sulting from currents of perverted life-force, we suffer. 

If the Race is to be propagated in vileness, every 
child that is born must bear the burden of a thought 

*III, 17. 

1 Meaning the entire planet, mistranslated "ground." 



226 The Voice of Isis 

of something vile and impure connected with its birth. 
It is no wonder that children so conceived have little 
love or respect for their unwilling- parents. Children 
born in love and purity, while subject to this world 
Karma or "in bondage to the flesh," will still be over- 
shadowed by a mantle of purity which will ward off 
many temptations to impurity and vileness, and will 
find their environment such as to lead them in paths 
of purity rather than in by-ways of evil. For this rea- 
son the salvation of the Race depends upon the pure 
in heart conceiving children in love and purity, for 
if the perpetuation of the Race is left to the impure 
and ignorant, conditions must grow worse. 

Without this thing which we are wont to look upon 
as vile and impure the Race would very soon become 
extinct. And if mankind continues to debase and de- 
grade this great gift the Race will still become extinct, 
for, as we have said above, nearly all diseases can be 
traced to the perverted activity of the creative force. 

In reality sexual desire is but the effort of the Soul 
to express Divine Love through the physical vehicle 
and should be looked upon as the lower or negative 
pole of that Love, and God is Love. When we debase, 
degrade and befoul sexual desire we are debasing the 
highest physical expression of the God within us. Just 
so long as parents fail to fill their children's minds 
with thoughts of the purity and the holiness of the 
sex relations, the thought that it is evil or vile will be 
perpetuated in the Race. Just so long as it is thought 
of as something unclean and vile, just so long will 
it be so; for the creative power of thought will clothe 
itself in the vile garments of the impure ideas, and the 
sins of the fathers will be visited upon the children 
unto the third and fourth generation. 



Purity 227 

Purify, then, not only your acts, but your thoughts. 
Persistently refuse to entertain impure ideas. Combat 
them with ideas of Purity and Divine Love. This does 
not mean, however, that you should deliberately close 
your eyes and refuse to admit or recognize that there 
is evil in the world. For a wise physician must rec- 
ognize the first symptoms of a disease that he may 
combat it ere it gains a foothold. Remember, always, 
that knowledge is power. Learn to look things in the 
face with a full consciousness of your power to create 
good where evil now exists. For, "As a man thinketh 
in his heart so is he." 



NOTE: For the methods of transmuting the sex-forces in those 
who arc not married, see the chapter on "The Sex Problem" In 
Letters from The Teacher, Curtiss. 




CHAPTER XVII. 

THE ORIGIN OF MAN. 

"In the day that God created man, in the like- 
ness of God made he him; male and female cre- 
ated he them; and blessed them, and called their 
name Adam, in the day when they were created." 
—Genesis, V. 1-2. 

"Man is a little world — a microcosm inside the 
great universe." — Isis Unveiled, Blavatsky; Vol. 
I j 212. 

There is much speculation among students of 
all schools in regard to the origin of man. Some 
hold to the orthodox idea that God literally fash- 
ioned a man out of clay and in some mysterious 
manner animated him with breath. Others hold 
to the Darwinian theory that man and the ape 
descended from a common ancestor, both being the 
result of a wholly physical and more or less mechan- 
ical evolution. Between these extremes the great 
mass of thinking people are seeking something 
more satisfying to a rational mind than the former 
and more elevating than the latter. To this great 
class there comes from out the ages the arcane 
teachings of those Great Souls who reached their 
godlike state before this world was born and who 
have been the manipulators of the evolutionary law 
under which this planet and its inhabitants have 
reached their present state. These Great Souls 
have always been and still are the Guides and 
Teachers of mankind, hence those whose reason 
postulates or whose intuition recognizes such god- 
like Beings can safely accept Their teachings, for 
They are in a position to know. This ancient wis- 



The Origin of Man 229 

dom has never been lost, but because of man's 
gradual refusal to accept and follow it during his 
ages of darkness and ignorance it has been tem- 
porarily withdrawn from the public teachings and care- 
fully preserved, although always accessible to every 
Soul who seeks it by the right method and in the right 
spirit. 

There are reasonable grounds for both the above 
mentioned theories. Man has both a spiritual evo- 
lution which comes from above and a material evo- 
lution which belongs to the earth. His physical 
body is the highest attainment of a physical evolu- 
tion through all the lower kingdoms where it has 
passed through stages analogous to the mineral, 
vegetable and animal, in an ethereal form corre- 
sponding to the stages through which the planet 
passed in previous Rounds. 1 His spiritual evolu- 
tion is the result of the voluntary descent of Im- 
mortal Egos into more or less perfected human-animal 
bodies, and Their subsequent effort to control and 
spiritualize those animal organisms. These arcane 
teachings, preserved in their purity upon imperishable 
records through all the ages, tell us that during each 
Day-period or Round seven Great Races follow each 
other successively, each being made up of seven sub- 
races which in turn are composed of many tribes, 
kingdoms and nations. These Races and sub-races 
do not begin suddenly or end abruptly to make way 
for the next, but overlap for untold ages ere the old 
gives way to the new. For example: "The majority 
of mankind belongs to the seventh sub-race of the 
Fourth Root-Race. The . . . Chinaman and their 
off -shoots and branchlets (Malayans, Mongolians, 
Tibetans, Hungarians, Finns and even the Esquimaux) 

Tlit Chapter XV. 



230 The Voice of Isis 

are all remnants of this last off-shoot," 1 although 
humanity is already entering the sixth sub-race of 
the Fifth Great Race of the Fourth Round. And some 
few children are even now being born who will be- 
come the teachers and prophets who will prepare 
for the coming of the Sixth Great Race. 

Following the cyclic Law, each of the tribes, nations, 
sub-races and Great Races has its humble birth, its 
youth, its maturity (during which it reaches the zenith 
of its power) then its gradual decline, decay, and final 
disappearance, as the recorded history of nations known 
today clearly shows. All that a Race acquires, how- 
ever, is stored up to reappear in its purity in the next 
Race. The reason for the decay is that the Race has 
acquired all that its physical evolution enables it to 
express. Further accumulation of knowledge must be 
postponed until a finer and more responsive organism 
has been evolved. Therefore while an entirely new 
Race seems to appear, in reality it is but the reincar- 
nation of those Souls who composed the former Races. 
In this Round the majority of persons in the western 
nations have evolved through the Fourth Great Race 
and through the sub-races of the Fifth (Aryan) to the 
point where they are now just entering its sixth sub- 
race, although among all nations there are laggards 
belonging to less evolved sub-races. 

During the first Great or Root- (Polar) Race, the 
germs of that which was to become man were sleeping 
as it were through the chaotic conditions of the then 
ethereal world, a sleep of oblivion in the waters of 
the uncreate. Hence man today can have little com- 
prehension of this First Race. As the Spirit of God 
moved upon the face of the waters misty or cloud- 
like forms composed of but two elements — air and 

TAi Stcrtl Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II; 188. 



The Origin of Man 231 

water — arose, having a sentient life yet not human 
intelligence. These cloud-like forms "composed of 
the most ethereal matter compatible with objectivity" 
took the shape of "gigantic semi-human monsters, the 
first attempt of material nature at building human 
bodies." x This was the Second or Hyperborean Race. 
This Race was sexless, their mode of reproduction 
being by fission or division, just as a cloud might 
separate into two parts. These misty forms became 
more and more dense by the gradual absorption of 
a new element, earth, until "The Second Race . . . 
being also sexless, evolved out of itself, at its be- 
ginning, the Third, Androgyne Race by an analogous, 
but already more complicated process. . . . The 
emanations that came from their bodies during the 
seasons of procreation were ovulary; . . . devel- 
oping into a large soft, egg-like vehicle, which gradu- 
ally hardened, when, after a period of gestation, it 
broke and the young human animal issued from it 
unaided, as the fowls do in our Race." 2 Not a strange 
procedure when we remember that even today a 
child is born in a membraneous sack or "a large soft 
egg-like vehicle." At the middle point of this Second 
Race "He is still gigantic and ethereal, but growing 
firmer and more condensed in body; a more physical 
man yet still less intelligent than spiritual, for mind 
is a slower and more difficult evolution than is the 
physical frame." s These primitive beings were still 
composed of astral matter and today would not be 
visible, hence they left no physical traces by which sci- 
ence might discover them. "The evolution of the physio- 
logical man out of the astral races of the early Lemu- 

l Ibid, Vol. II; 146. 
'Ibid, Vol. II; 175. 
'Ibid, Vol. I; 211. 



232 The Voice of Isis 

rian age — the Jurassic age of Geology — is exactly 
paralleled by the 'materialization' of 'spirits' (?) in 
the seance room." 1 Only toward the middle of the 
Third Race (Lemurian) did solid bones develop, the 
sexes separate, the body become "clothed with coats 
of skin" and take on the human form as we know 
it today, although at that time it was of gigantic pro- 
portions. 2 It was from this point onward that truly 
human evolution began, as symbolized in the Bible 
by Adam and Eve. Previous to this time the Races 
were cold-blooded like the present day amphibians, 
reptiles, fishes and the invertebrates, taking on the 
temperature of their surroundings, but from this point 
on humanity gradually became warm-blooded and 
maintained a constant body temperature. Thus 
it will be seen that man is truly the microcosm of 
the macrocosm. For in his physical development 
and in his modes of procreation he has passed through 
all the stages Nature has used and still uses in the 
lower kingdoms. The mineral reproduces by exuding 
its essence ; the vegetable by budding or by seeds, each 
part of the plant as a slip being capable of reproducing 
the entire plant just as a part of Adam's body (his 
rib) reproduced Eve; and the animal by the sexual 
process. 

The above refers merely to the evolution of the 
animal body of man, and in some respects may re- 
semble the Darwinian hypothesis, the great difference 
being that according to these teachings the beginnings 
of man were not upon the physical-plane and all stages 
were not passed through in physical matter. This is 
why science has ever failed in its search for the "miss- 
ing link" or the "common ancestor" of man and the 

*7bid, Vol. II; 778. 

•"There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after 
that."— Genesis, VI; 4. 



The Origin of Man 233 

ape. Man did not descend from the ape or from a 
common ancestor, but the ape descended from man, 
being the perverted and degenerate offspring resulting 
from the sins of the latest Third and early Fourth 
Races. 1 

After the middle of the Third Race a dual evolu- 
tion begins. Spiritual Beings (called Solar Fathers 
or Pitris) who had reached their high estate on pre- 
vious World Chains, consciously descended to earth 
and breathed into the human-animal forms "the 
breath of life," as recorded in Genesis. That which 
is called the breath was something with which animal 
man was then endowed, a power and capacity added to 
the mere animal consciousness he possessed before; 
for it was the breath of Divine Life, a human Soul, a 
spiritual overshadowing. This same teaching is repre- 
sented in Genesis by the Adam of the first chapter 
being created but a sexless animal, the culmination 
and last of animal creation; the Adam of the second 
chapter first being created a bi-sexual animal, then 
being endowed with a human Soul. This Adam (the 
early Third Race) was created before the animals and 
each animal was brought to him to be named. Later 
on this Adam evolved out of his bi-sexual state into 
that of the separated sexes, Adam and Eve. Then 
"the Sons of God (semi-divine Beings) saw the 
daughters of men (the evolved human-animal forms) 
that they were fair; and they took them wives of all 
which they chose," 2 and begat the future sub-races. 
The union of the Sons of God with the daughters of 
men added to the elements in humanity (air, water, 
earth) a new element, fire, or intellect. Fire is a sacred 
and higher element which only comes to earth as the 
gift o f the gods to man and man alone of all creation 

1 See Chapter III. 
* Genesis, VI; 2. 



234 The Voice of his 

can control it and use it unafraid. But only the highest 
of the human forms were ready, hence comparatively 
few received the divine incarnation, while many re- 
ceived the spark of self-consciousness and still more 
received but an overshadowing of the semi-divine 
Beings who in future stages of evolution were ulti- 
mately to become their Fathers-in-heaven. " 'Some 
projected a Spark. Some deferred till the Fourth. 
. . . Those who entered became Ahrats. Those 
who received but a Spark, remained destitute of 
(higher) knowledge. . . . The Third remained 
mindless.' This stanza contains, in itself, the whole 
key to the mysteries of evil, the so-called Fall of the 
Angels, and the many problems that have puzzled the 
brains of the Philosophers from the time that the 
memory of man began. It solves the secret of the 
subsequent inequalities of intellectual capacity, of birth 
and social position, and gives a logical explanation of 
the incomprehensible Karmic course throughout the 
eons whiclK followed." 1 These differences were not 
the result of injustice, but were due to the inequalities 
of the animal organisms, just as we find today in a 
field of wheat — all of which was planted at the same 
time, with the same seed, and in the same soil — vary- 
ing degrees of perfection, some ripe for the harvest, 
others unripe, others not yet begun to head out. The 
great Law shows no partiality. All will reach their 
perfection in due season. 

As involution progressed the response of matter to 
the molding and guiding power of Spirit became 
less and less, proportionate to the increasing density 
of the forms through which it had to act. And 
only when the human brain had evolved into a 
fit instrument to respond to the Divine Spark could 

*The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II; 170-171. 



The Origin of Man 235 

man become a rational self-conscious being. Until 
then he was merely a human-animal, begetting his 
kind according to animal instinct but unable consciously 
to create according to his will and desire. "He has 
now a perfectly concrete or compacted body, at first 
the form of a giant-ape, and now more intelligent, or 
rather cunning, than spiritual. For, on the down- 
ward arc, he has now reached a point where his pri- 
mordial spirituality is eclipsed and overshadowed by 
nascent mentality. In the last half of the Third (Race) 
his gigantic stature decreases and his body improves 
in texture, and he becomes a more rational being, 
though still more an ape than a Deva." x 

The Fourth Race, like the Fourth Globe or Round, 
is the lowest point of involution, or the turning point. 
The gift of mind having evolved through all the ages 
of the Third, and the first part of the Fourth Race, 
reached its truly human stage about the middle point 
of the Fourth. "The (hitherto) dumb races acquired 
our (present) human speech on this Globe, on which, 
from the Fourth Race, language is perfected and 
knowledge increases." x At that time the psychic 
powers held sway but were beginning to be dominated 
by the rapidly developing intellect and will. Under 
the guidance of his Divine Ancestors man had been 
taught all the arts and sciences as well as the control 
and proper use of all the powers within himself and in 
Nature. When he had grown up as it were, his divine 
Instructors withdrew leaving him free to use his pow- 
ers as he would, and of his own free-will put into prac- 
tice the precepts They had inculcated. But with the 
exercise of free-will the temptation to use his great 
knowledge for his own sensuous pleasure and for his 
selfish aggrandizement was too great and gradually 

1 Ibid, Vol. I; 211. 
*Ibid. Vol. I; 211. 



236 The Voice of Isis 

he chose to follow the lure of the senses rather 
than the call of the Spirit. It was during this 
period of evolution that the seeds of Karma were 
sown, whose terrible harvest the world as a whole has 
been and still is reaping even unto this day. His spir- 
itual Progenitors, seeing the awful results of man's 
failure, in love and mercy, temporarily removed the 
greater part of the Race from the scene of its debase- 
ment through the great cataclysms which destroyed 
the continent of Atlantis, a memory of which is re- 
corded in the scriptures of many nations today as the 
Great Flood. 

Many legends are extant concerning the nations of 
that Fourth or Atlantean Race. And today a new 
interest in their histories is awakening in the minds 
of all classes of thinkers, and many theories and even 
circumstantial accounts are being given out concern- 
ing their civilizations. The reason for this is that 
those Souls who formerly composed the Atlantean 
Race are now reincarnating in large numbers in the 
western world where they must re-acquire their former 
knowledge, redeem the failures of the past, and rise to 
a higher stage of spirituality than ever before. 

The Atlantean Race was the culminating point in 
the evolution of the physical, mental, and psychic 
powers. Their intellectual powers had reached as 
great perfection as their physical and psychic powers, 
but spirituality was more or less dormant. The result 
was that they controlled and manipulated the physical 
and psychic currents of force and dominated both the 
animal and elemental worlds. They thus reached a 
stage of civilization in some respects far higher than 
man has subsequently attained. In our present Race, 
however, this same degree of perfection must again 
be attained, but dominated by the higher spiritual evo- 



The Origin of Man 237 

lution. It is this culmination that we are now rapidly 
attaining and for which the advanced Souls of the 
former Race are again incarnating. It is the 
Atlantean civilization which is symbolized by the 
Tower of Babel, a civilization whose base rested 
on earth but whose top reached into the higher realms 
farther than man of that- day was entitled to go. By 
the perversion and debasement of their powers, their 
impurity and selfishness, they fell into monstrous evils. 
Striving only for personal power and gratification 
many became terrible black magicians, misusing and 
perverting the forces of life. 

All, however, were not wicked, some followed the 
precepts of their divine Teachers and used their great 
powers for good. Certain of these were gathered 
together — especially out of the fifth sub-race — and dur- 
ing the sixth and seventh sub-races were taught by 
the "Sons of God" how to perpetuate the sacred teach- 
ings and carry them over the period of the cataclysms 
which marked the close of the Race. They thus be- 
came the teachers and guides of future Races, as 
symbolized by the Bible story of Noah. During the 
sixth and seventh sub-races all classes were warned of 
the coming disasters by their spiritual Teachers and 
were exhorted to repentance and a change of life. All 
who listened and believed escaped and settled in various 
distant mountainous regions. This teaching is cor- 
roborated by the discovery today, in such widely 
separated countries as Egypt, India, Central and South 
America, of similar and even identical hieroglyphics, 
symbols, architecture, etc. The reign of the black 
magicians grew worse and worse and the enslavement 
of their fellow men and the perversion of their forces 
became more awful until the earth's crust could no 
longer withstand the perverted currents of force, 



238 The Voice of his 

and after a series of cataclysms lasting through the 
sixth and seventh sub-races it finally sank beneath the 
waves. Owing to these cataclysms great numbers 
emigrated to distant lands and became the seed from 
which sprang the great masses of the present Race. 
In fact, the yellow races of Eastern Asia today are 
their direct descendants. 

History repeats itself, and the same thing is hap- 
pening today. Humanity is being warned through 
various sources. Prophets today as of old are pro- 
claiming the near approach of catastrophes and 
cataclysms and the call to repentance, love, and 
brotherhood is heard in the land. The approach- 
ing cataclysms, however, will not be as widespread 
as those of Atlantis, the close of this cycle being 
but the close of a sub-race (fifth) instead of a Great 
Race. 

The Fifth Great Race is our present red or white 
Aryan Race, the characteristic of which is the in- 
creasing spiritualization of matter through man. 
Up to the turning point at the middle of the Fourth 
Race spirit was being involved into matter, but 
from that time on matter has been evolving toward 
Spirit. We have evolved through the sub-races of this 
Fifth Race until we are now just entering upon its 
sixth sub-race. During this coming sub-race the 
seed will be planted of that which will be reaped 
by the Sixth Great Race, just as the fifth sub-race 
of the Atlanteans planted the seed of this present 
Fifth Great Race. This Fifth Race, however, has 
some sixteen thousand years of its cycle still left ere 
the close of its seventh sub-race and the great cata- 
clysms which will mark its end. 

In the Sixth Great Race the Christ-principle will 
find its greatest expression, and its greatest power 



The Origin of Man 239 

in and over matter, thus spiritualizing' and lifting 
both life and matter on all planes into a higher 
state. This Race must also witness the culmination 
and fulfillment through Divine Love of all the 
efforts put forth during all previous Races. Thus 
will it usher in the Golden Age. This Race will 
cover but a short period of time as compared with 
the earlier Races. 

The Seventh Race will bring into manifestation 
the Golden Age and synthesise all that has been 
gained, thus becoming the great Fulfillment, the 
culmination of man's evolution in this Day-period or 
Round. During this Race the highest attainments of 
man's evolution will be gathered up preparatory to 
informing the humanity of a new Globe or Day-period, 
the Fifth Round. 

As in the days of Atlantis, so today. Those whose 
hearts can respond to the higher note today being 
imparted to humanity through the various avenues 
of teaching utilized by the Progenitors of man, will 
first be prepared then gathered together into a defi- 
nite Center of civilization where they can have an 
opportunity to receive the direct teaching and guid- 
ance of the same Great Souls who have always pre- 
pared for the re-unfoldment of wisdom at certain 
cyclic intervals. This great Center, however, will 
not be limited to any one sect, avenue of teaching 
or any one organization, society, or order, but will 
be composed of all those symbolized in Revelation 
by the mystic "hundred and forty and four thousand" 
who stood on Mount Sion "having their Father's 
name written in their foreheads." In other words, 
those who have received their mystical name and 
through the power of The Christ have developed 
their spiritual perceptions. Every movement which 



240 TJu> Voice of his 

is striving to give out pure spiritual teachings is an 
avenue used by the Great Ones to reach a certain 
class of persons, but only those who are ready and 
have received the mystic mark in their foreheads 
will be able to enter in. 

The Order of the 15, being composed largely of the 
reincarnated Souls who in the days of ancient 
Atlantis were entrusted with the task of preparing 
a place of refuge and promulgating the arcane 
teachings, must again take up the reincarnated 
work; for ideas, teachings and movements incarnate 
as well as Souls. All who at that time responded to 
its call will naturally be attracted to this particular 
movement today, and according to their point of 
development and the work they accomplished then 
will they be given a special place and a special work 
to do in the preparation for the coming of the new 
sub-race. Many who repudiated the teachings in 
those days and through the resulting suffering have 
learned their lessons will through this Order be 
given another opportunity to retrieve the past and 
take an advanced step in their spiritual life. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE SYMBOL OF THE SERPENT. 

"Now the serpent was more subtil than any 
beast of the field which the Lord God had made. 
And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, 
Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may 
eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden : but 
of the fruit of the tree which is .in the midst of 
the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of 
it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the 
serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely 
die : For God doth know that in the day ye eat 
thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye 
shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." — Gen- 
esis, III. 1-5. 

In that remote period, during which both sacred 
and profane history admit the fact that the gods 
confabulated with infant humanity, the serpent was 
the symbol of the god Saturn (in Egypt Sat-An, 
later Saturn), giver of esoteric Wisdom, one of the 
Elohim, the Sons of God. He is referred to in Job 
as the Great Initiator sent by the Lord to test Job, 1 
the whole book of Job being the story of an initia- 
tion. From the earliest ages the serpent was recog- 
nized as the symbol of Esoteric Wisdom. Many 
nations worshiped it as the symbol of the Sun, the 
Giver of Life. Only during the Dark Ages of medi- 
eval history was it degraded and limited to signify 
the force of evil or D-evil. Jesus recognized the 
serpent as a symbol of good when He admonished 
His disciples: "Be ye therefore wise as serpents 
and harmless as doves." The Assyrian priests were 
called Serpents, as were also the Druid priests. The 

x Job I., 6. 



242 The Voice of Isis 

Masters of Wisdom, and all Initiates into the Sa- 
cred Mysteries, are called Nagas, or Serpents of 
Wisdom, because, by overcoming temptation they 
are said to have cast off their outer skin and to 
have been "born again," thus becoming Sons of 
Will and Wisdom, and immortal ; they have met 
the Great Initiator and have wrested from him his 
Rod of Power. Again the serpent is an old glyph 
for the Astral Light, the medium of both white and 
black magic, good in its spiritual aspect, but evil in 
its lower. "The primitive symbol of the serpent symbol- 
ized divine Wisdom and Perfection, and has always 
stood for psychical Regeneration and Immortality." * 
Hermes called the serpent the most spiritual of all 
creatures. Moses, initiated into the wisdom of 
Hermes, called it, "More subtil than any beast of 
the field." "The strange veneration in which the 
Ophites held the serpent which represented Christos 
may become less perplexing if the students would 
but remember that at all ages the serpent was the 
symbol of divine wisdom, which kills in order to 
resurrect, destroys but to rebuild the better. Moses 
is made a descendant of Levi, a serpent-tribe. 
Gautama-Buddha is of a serpent-lineage, through 
the Naga (serpent) race of kings who reigned in 
Magadha. Hermes, or the god Taaut (Thoth), 
in his snake-symbol is Tet ; and according to the 
Ophite legends, Jesus or Christos is born from 
a snake ( divine ^Wisdom or Holy Ghost) i. e., 
he became a Son of God through his initiation into 
the 'Serpent Science.' " 2 

From time immemorial the serpent has symbol- 
ized the sex-force, good when lifted up — as Moses 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I, page 102. The Sacred 
Dragon of China and Japan, indicating the divine origin of the rulers, 
has the same significance. 
2 Isis Unveiled. Blavatsky, Vol. 484. 



The Symbol of tlve Serpent 243 

lifted it up in the wilderness, that all who were suf- 
fering and dying from the stings of the poisonous vi- 
pers (perversions of the sex-force) might be healed by 
the vision of Purity revealed by the Brazen Serpent — 
evil when allowed to crawl in the mire of earth, 
biting the heel of the woman and placing enmity 
between her seed and it. It is said that: "Before 
our globe became egg-shaped — and the Universe 
also — 'a. long trail of cosmic dust (or fire-mist) 
moved and writhed like a serpent in space.' " * Thus 
our globe was prepared by the serpent-force for the 
great test humanity came to this planet to exper- 
ience, i. e., the ability to control the creative power 
and create "in the image of God," through the spir- 
itualization and perfect blending of the separated 
sexes. This great lesson when learned will enable 
man to become "as one of us" or Divine. 

After man became involved in matter (as out- 
lined in Chapter XIII) and the androgynous Third 
Race had gradually evolved through its various stages 
the separation of the sexes took place. This, how- 
ever, was not a sudden change affecting the entire 
Race, but was the result of a gradual evolution 
lasting through the entire latter half of that Race. 
This is symbolized by the story of Eve being taken 
from Adam, solus, while he was in a deep sleep, the 
deep sleep being the pralaya or night-period be- 
tween the Third and Fourth Races, during which 
the separation was perfected. The word Adam 
means "red earth" and refers to the Third Race in 
which the humanity of the Red Ray was first 
clothed in an earthly body. The Adam and Eve 
spoken of later as one man and one woman, sym- 
bolize the sexes functioning separately in the great 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Vol. I., p. 103. Many ancient people believed 
that the earth was hatched from a serpent's egg. 



244 The Voice of his 

Atlantean or Fourth Race. Hence at the dawn of 
the Fourth Race the androgynous forms of the early- 
Third Race had disappeared and only the separated 
sexual forms known to us today remained. 

In one sense the Garden of Eden symbolizes the 
pure and perfect physical body in which infant hu- 
manity was originally clothed. According to the 
same symbology the Tree which is in the midst of 
the Garden is the spinal cord, the sap of which 
is the Kundalini-force 1 (serpent- force), a dynamic 
creative power functioning through the spinal cord, 
its lower aspect being expressed through the sex 
organs, and its higher aspect functioning through 
the pineal gland. 2 The Fruit of this Tree is the 
spiritual power gained as the result of the open- 
ing of that what is known as the Third Eye. As man, 
through experience, gains Wisdom he uses this 
mystic power gradually to bring about its higher 
physical manifestations as well as the psychic and 
spiritual. It slowly ascends the spinal cord through 
the central canal until it reaches and stimulates 
into activity the pineal gland, the functioning of 
which is called the opening of the Eye of Wisdom. 
It is not, however, the physiological change in this 
organ which opens man's consciousness to Divine 
Wisdom, but — following the biological law "func- 
tion makes structure" — it is the attainment of the 
higher function which results in the anatomical and 
physiological change. Only through the function- 
ing of this Kundalini power can mankind gain the 
experience that both good and evil have to teach. 

A moment's thought as to these early symbol- 

1 "The 'power' and the 'World-Mother' are names given to the kun- 
dalini — one of the mystic 'Yogi powers.' .... It is an electro-spiritual 
force, a creative power which when aroused into action, can as easily 
kill as it can create." — Tht Voict of Silence, Blavatsky. Note to page 9. 

» The Third Eye, or Seat of the Soul. 



The Symbol of the Serpent 245 

isms will show that there is an underlying mean- 
ing common to all (Saturn the Initiator, Satan the 
Tempter, the Astral Light, the Creative Power of 
sex, et cetera), namely, that it is, in very truth, the 
power to become "as gods" that is indicated. Being 
the distinctive heritage of the Fourth Race, this 
power to create sexually became at one and the 
same time the great temptation and the great 
opportunity. In fact, it was the one experience for 
which this globe was created and for which human- 
ity fell into generation and became clothed with 
"coats of skin." 

The infant Race at its outset was confronted by 
the Initiator, Saturn, the Serpent, who was commis- 
sioned to impart, as the crowning gift, the creative 
power — which humanity only then was prepared to 
receive. The so-called "temptation" was but a test 
of man's ability either to use or abuse this divine 
gift. Ever since that time man and woman, indi- 
vidually, have had to meet the same test. Man 
created in the image of God, and endowed with the 
God-power of creativeness, must prove his ability 
to use this power wisely, or, through its abuse, 
learn the lesson and gain through suffering the ex- 
perience that physical existence in separated sexes 
alone can teach. The power was given him not as 
a temptation but as a step in evolution through 
which he must pass in perfect purity. Just as in 
this day a teacher who gives out a new advanced 
truth is condemned for the evil resulting from its 
misuse, so Saturn (Satan), has had to bear the 
responsibility arising from the failure of man to use 
the creative power in purity and holiness. Man has 
chosen to become "as gods" knowing the evil 
through the misuse of this power, but, ere the cycle 



246 The Voice of Isis 

closes, must become "as gods" to know the good. 

The culmination of his degradation was reached by 
the Atlanteans, who not only used this force for 
animal gratification, but also perverted it to ac- 
complish their horrible practices of black magic. 
It was for this sin that the continent of Atlantis 
and most of its inhabitants were destroyed. 1 While 
the sinking of Atlantis destroyed much of the dan- 
gerous knowledge of how to pervert this force into 
black magic or evil, yet enough remained to per- 
petuate evil and misery on earth and make a hell 
out of what was given to man to be his Paradise. 
The whole experience, including the sin and suf- 
fering which the perversion of this force has created, 
is an initiation, not only for the Race, but also for 
the planet, which when successfully passed will 
make the planet the completion of the octave of 
this system and the beginning of a new and greater 
system. 

The banishment of Adam and Eve from Eden 
was due to the fact they could not face the Flaming 
Sword of Purity, which turned every way and 
barred them from obtaining the Fruit of the Tree. 
This banishment meant that man could no longer 
dwell in the etherealized body (Eden) with his spir- 
itual faculties freely functioning and able to talk 
face to face with God. Instead, the Immortal Soul 
is forced to dwell in a body of dense physical mat- 
ter with the spiritual centers dormant, so that only 
by the sweat of his brow can he obtain spiritual 
bread. This means that only by laborious effort 
can man open the inner doors that communicate 
with the higher planes and consciously bring to 
himself the spiritual food upon which his Soul 

1 The destruction recorded in Babylonian, Chaldean, Hebrew and 
other Scriptures, in the story of the great flood. 



The Symbol of the Serpent 247 

must live. At every attempt to re-enter Eden man 
is met by the Angel of the Flaming Sword placed 
by God to guard the Tree of Immortal Life from 
man's impurity. 

"Thou shalt surely die" is usually considered a 
penalty for man's defilement of Eden, but in reality 
even this death sentence was but the working of 
the immutable Law of Divine Love ; for immortal- 
ity under conditions of impurity, sickness and suf- 
fering, would be a punishment far surpassing even 
the medieval conceptions of a physical hell. Only 
when man can face this Sword of the Spirit and 
allow it to cleave from him every cloak of impurity 
and once more enter the Garden naked but not 
ashamed, can he meet "The Lord God walking in 
the Garden in the cool of the day." "The cool of 
the day" refers to the close of the cycle of wander- 
ing outside the Garden, the "day-period" the period 
of stress and strain, of heat and passion, which both 
the individual and the Race must face and conquer 
ere they can attain poise or cool, quiet perception, 
in which state alone they can become aware of the 
Lord God or the Law of Good manifesting in the 
garden of their human personality. 

The so-called temptation was the act of one of 
the Sons of God who was the direct channel 
through which the power to create reached human- 
ity. The giver of this gift, Saturn, or Lucifer, Star 
of the Morning, is a bright Archangel, who "fell" 
or descended from heaven to confer this gift of im- 
mortality upon man. Saturn or Satan is that aspect of 
Jehovah which brought humanity its great test, and in 
this sense may be regarded as its tempter or Initiator, 
while Lucifer is the aspect of that same force which 
confers the crown of victory on those who conquer. 



248 The Voice of Isis 

There are many passages referring to him as one of 
the Elohim. 

"This personification denominated Satan is to be 
contemplated from three different planes : the Old 
Testament, the Christian Fathers, and the ancient Gen- 
tile attitude. He is supposed to have been represented 
by the Serpent in the Garden of Eden ; nevertheless, 
the epithet of Satan is noivhere in the Hebrezv sacred 
writings applied to that or any other form of ophid- 
ian." 1 His so-called "fall" was by no means one of 
sin or failure, but a voluntary descent to earth to 
bring to man the Creative Fire, the gift of the 
gods; for only through the mastery and proper use 
of this force can immortality be obtained. The 
story of Prometheus is but another expression of 
this ideograph. 

There is no evil outside mankind that can pro- 
duce a Satan in the orthodox sense of a devil. It 
is only through terrible perversions of the creative 
power that it has become the Evil or D-evil. As 
time passed, by his vile, lustful thoughts on this 
subject and his misuse of the life-force, man has 
created a composite thought-form which may be 
said to be entitized into a living force of evil (com- 
monly called the devil), which, with an army of so- 
called lesser devils, arrayed in serried ranks, con- 
tinually fights against the power of Good (God). 
These are the vipers that tormented the Children of 
Israel, and all other races. This army must be met 
by Good, and will be annihilated only when 
thought-forms of Purity are sent forth by man in 
sufficient numbers and force to overcome the evil 
creations. Being the creation of man, functioning 
in his lowest aspect, this evil can be conquered 

1 Isis Unveiled, Blavatsky, Vol. II, 481. 



The Symbol of the Serpent 249 

only by man, its creator. The conquering must 
take the form of a transmutation, i. e., the substitu- 
tion of vitalized thoughts of love and purity for 
those of lust and evil. 

In the childhood of the Race a great wave of ser- 
pent worship, originally intended to symbolize this 
truth in its purity, spread over the world. This, 
however, in time became degraded, and the reptile 
itself was finally worshiped as a god. It was kept 
in a filthy den and the youth and beauty of the 
land were thrown to it for prey. It was fed on 
human beings until it grew fat and the stench of it 
filled all the Temple, even to the outer courts. 
Humanity is again walking in the same old paths, 
according to the law of cycles, and today is but re- 
peating the sad story upon a higher plane (the 
mental). First, undue exaltation and worship, as 
witnessed in the days of phallicism, then materiali- 
zation and consequent defilement, until today the 
world's idea of the serpent-power (sex) is that of a 
monster grown fat upon the youth and beauty of the 
land. 

The teachings in regard to the sex-function have 
always been held most sacred, and for this reason 
they have been veiled from humanity in general and 
revealed only to those whose purity of heart and 
life permitted them to grasp something of their 
deeper truths. Because of this veiling of the truth, 
there have sprung up in the minds of those not 
instructed in the Mysteries many misconceptions, 
chief of which is that this great God-given power is 
in and of itself inherently impure and accursed. 
This belief has given rise to doctrines which teach 
man to despise and try to kill out this greatest of 
gifts. But as long as this serpent of sex is accursed 



250 The Voice of his 

and degraded by man's thought, it is doomed to 
crawl upon the ground and bring forth its progeny 
of vipers in darkness and filth, and woman is doomed 
to conceive and bring forth in pain and suffering 
instead of Purity and Joy. Woman has suffered the 
most, but by that suffering she should have developed 
her spiritual intuition. 

The sex-force is considered impure only because the 
spiritually blind have decreed that it shall be considered 
impure. They assume that they are wiser and 
holier than He who created them, He who breathed 
into them the Living Fire of creative force. Being 
wiser than the gods, they have decreed that the nor- 
mal expression of the sex-function (within the mar- 
ried relation) shall be considered vile and that it 
shall be suppressed. The result is already appar- 
ent. Go over the world's history and you will find 
that, after every period 1 during which the marriage 
relation, consummated in pure and holy love, was 
relegated to second place in gaining spiritual de- 
velopment, and the normal sex-function was taught 
to be inherently impure and calculated to hold back 
the participants from spiritual growth and final 
liberation, that it was something to be suppressed 
and killed out, there invariably followed a wave of 
licentiousness in which filthy substitutes, practiced 
for so-called "mere physical relief," were not only 
condoned, but taught as preferable to the normal 
relation ! and taught in the name of religion ! or 
spiritual development! or "occult" or "esoteric" sci- 
ence! 

If such practices were advocated by the outcasts 
of humanity the world would stand aghast, and 
societies for the suppression of the vice would 
quickly spring up. But when such perverted teach- 

1 Periods during which celibacy was held to be the ideal. 



The Symbol of the Serpent 251 

ings are given out under the name of "spiritual" or 
"esoteric" truth (as though secrecy could make 
impurity pure!) by those who are well advanced 
upon the Path, many, many blinded ones forget 
even the common standards of morality and de- 
cency, and eagerly clutch at such an excuse for the 
gratification of inherent vileness under the cloak 
of "esoteric teaching" which lends to it an air of 
respectability. "The greater the height attained 
the more disastrous the fall." The greater the 
influence of such a teacher the more serious and far- 
reaching the effects of the lapse from Purity. 
Instead of there being any latitude permitted to 
those who are advanced upon the Path of Attain- 
ment, the rules ewe far more strict. What would be 
but a slight lapse from virtue in a savage or in the 
ignorant, becomes a cyclone of iniquity sweeping 
many before it, in one who has entered the inner 
degrees of occultism ; for upon each inner step 
every vibration is multiplied a thousand fold. This 
is why the disciple should absolutely master (gain 
perfect control of, not suppress) all life-forces ere he 
attempts to enter the inner degrees, or his failure 
is foreordained. Let this point be clearly under- 
stood, there can be no spiritual teachings, of any kind, 
either esoteric of exoteric, th-at are not founded upon 
absolute Purity, not only of body but of mind. The 
higher and more esoteric the teaching, the more 
rigid the standard of Purity. All planes interblend, 
and all acts upon the physical-plane have their cor- 
respondences upon all other planes. Therefore, 
what is impure on the lowest plane is a thousand 
times more so upon each successive inner plane. If 
a pilgrim were approaching a sacred shrine he 
would not knowingly enter with his feet slimed 



252 The Voice of Isis 

with the mud of the public highway, and hope to 
leave no stain upon the pure alabaster floor of the 
inner court, for even the faintest footprint would be 
more noticeable there than the filth that covered 
the public highway an inch deep. 

This subject has been the greatest stumbling 
block for many teachers who are otherwise trying 
to uplift humanity, because it is the greatest test of 
the humanity on this globe. Only when this lesson 
is learned will others await it under different condi- 
tions. But there must be some brave Souls who are 
willing now to face the world's misconceptions and 
slander and stand boldly for the uplifting and puri- 
fying of this subject. The world must be taught 
the difference between the wise, normal use of this 
function in perfect purity, in the married relation 
only, and killing it out or suppressing it. Many 
talk loudly about "overcoming" and "killing out" 
this force, but if you could look into their hearts 
you would see that their "overcoming" is usually 
but satiety. They have crawled through the filthy 
places of life and have slimed their impure ideas of 
sex over everything until they have grown sick. 
Then they put on monkish habits, and talk loudly 
about having "outgrown all such animal instincts." 
Many others have never known anything but the 
impure side of sex. Their ideals have been so shat- 
tered by contact with the world's misconceptions 
that they, in their natural purity, have put the 
thought of it from them as something too vile to 
be considered. This shrinking from the subject 
is the natural result of the world's attitude. For, 
alas, even those who set themselves up as teachers 
on this subject are apt to but stir up the filth and 
leave things worse than they were before. This is 



The Symbol of the Serpent 253 

invariably the rule if the world's standards of mor- 
ality are ruthlessly set aside, especially those per- 
taining to the legal marriage relation, which is not 
only a sacred sacrament — a symbol of the Marriage 
of the Soul, the union with the Higher Self, becom- 
ing one with the Father-in-heaven — but is also a bul- 
wark of safety to society that must never, under any 
pretext, be weakened. 

As to the final disuse of this function : As long as 
man has his present anatomical structure and phys- 
iological functions he must learn how to bring to 
perfection, purify and use for its highest purpose the 
body and functions he now possesses and not waste 
time speculating on what conditions will obtain in 
future world-periods. For only when new condi- 
tions are given him can he grasp more advanced 
lessons. "It doth not appear what we shall be : . . . 
I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy like- 
ness." But we cannot "awake" until we have puri- 
fied and used every function we possess for the 
glory of God. Hence The Order of the 15 desires 
to teach humanity how to prepare for the future 
by taking the next step here and now. 

The time has come when woman must take her 
place as the Priestess of the Most High, the Re- 
vealer of Purity and Truth to man. She it is who 
must lift the corner of the veil that hides the face of 
the Divine Mother, Isis. Isis is called the Divine 
Mother because hers is the force, both in Nature 
and humanity, that brings forth. She is spoken of 
as having seven veils, alluding to the protection 
thrown around the sacred mysteries connected 
with the bringing into manifestation of the creative 
force (God-the-Father) sent out through the mas- 
culine expression. The seven veils are the mys- 



254 The Voice of his 

teries upon the seven planes of consciousness and 
manifestation. The first and lowest of these veils, 
the mystery of physical birth, has never yet been 
lifted, nor can it be by profane hands. In the an- 
cient Temples of Isis it was death to so much as 
touch the veil before Her shrine, and on many tab- 
lets recently unearthed a carven serpent has been 
found having seven heads, which symbolizes the 
same mystery. The Phoenicians are said to have 
originated the alphabet from the symbols made by 
the writhing of the sacred serpents. This was an- 
other advance (creation) in evolution attributed to 
the serpent-god Saturn, for letters serve to manifest 
ideas, and their invention placed man upon a new 
step in evolution. 

Since through the ages woman has been made the 
plaything of man and taught to use her powers to 
entice and beguile him, as the only method by which 
she could attain her ends, in this new woman's era she 
is confronted with the task which her training makes 
most difficult, i. e. } the facing of herself and her real 
motives. For she must turn her feminine powers of 
love, intuition and beauty to the upliftment of the Race 
instead of to the beguilement of man that she may 
satisfy her vanity, love of conquest and desire for 
creature comforts. Although man, being the positive 
pole upon the earth-plane, by his superior physical 
powers has throughout the ages enslaved woman, 
still woman, upon the more subtile plane of desire, has 
dominated and enslaved man. Hence it is woman 
who must break the shackles, first of her own desires 
and then for the Race. This she can never do by 
playing upon man's chivalry to attain the gratification 
of her own ends, be those ends love, ambition, vanity, 
ease and comfort or whatnot. Many otherwise admir- 



The Symbol of the Serpent 255 

able women have debased their god-given instincts- 
love of home and desire for children— first by awaken- 
ing and playing upon man's animal passions to satisfy 
their ambition and then, by appealing to his chivalry, 
forcing him into what must inevitably prove an un- 
happy marriage. For quite as many men are blinded 
and led from the path of purity because of woman's 
ambitions and desires as women are led astray through 
man's passion. And until woman awakens to her 
responsibility and understands her real mission, i. e., 
her power to play upon man's heart, stimulate ' his 
noblest aspirations and thus lead him to the heights 
of spiritual attainment instead of into mere physical 
union without love, she will continue to be the slave 
she is today in spite of any political or social liberties 
she may obtain. 

It is woman who must lift up the world's ideas 
of the sex-force from the mire and degradation of 
man s misconceptions and give this great power its 
proper place in the Temple of the Living God (the 
body) as the highest expression of the Divine in 
man. Just as it was woman who gave to man the 
apple of discord, so must woman pluck the golden 
apples that grow at the top of the Tree of Life 
and give them to man to eat. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

PURIFICATION VERSUS DEIFICATION". 

"Hokhmah Wisdom is the Father, and Bina 
Understanding is the Mother. When they con- 
nect one with the other, they bring forth and 
diffuse and emanate Truth." — Zoahr, III, 290. 

"And the woman was arrayed in purple and 
scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious 
stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her 
hand full of abominations and filthiness of her 
fornication." — Revelation XVII, 4. 

We have had so many inquiries from earnest 
students as to our teachings on the subject of sex, 
in addition to those given in former lessons, 1 and 
as this subject has been the stumbling block for 
mankind since its fall into matter (middle of the 
Third Race), and as once more a cyclic wave of the 
old phallic worship is sweeping over the earth, it 
seems necessary that we define our teachings on 
this subject so clearly and concisely that the ear- 
nest seeker after truth may have no doubt of the 
Path which we point out. Many pupils may feel 
that the conditions herein outlined are exagger- 
ated, that this lesson is uncalled for, and is touch- 
ing a subject it is well not to mention; but if there 
are any such, we advise them to lay this lesson aside 
and permit us to be the judge of its necessity and 
of the great cry from so many hearts to be shown 
the straight and narrow way, and have some clear 
and sound understanding of this subject. 

As we stated in the previous chapter, the fall into 

1 Purity; The Symbol of the Serpent; Celibacy; The Meaning of 
the Cross. 



'Purification Versus Deification 257 

generation was simply an opportunity given humanity 
to meet and conquer a new and advanced step ; that the 
temptation by the serpent recorded in Genesis was 
the great test for which the whole scheme of evo- 
lution on this planet (the middle or turning point 
of evolution), and the planet itself was created; 
that only when man, through the experience reaped 
by wading through the lower aspects of this prob- 
lem, had reached a conception of its higher possi- 
bilities, could he fulfill the prophecy and become 
as the gods. Concerning the forbidden fruit the 
serpent told Eve that "In the day ye eat thereof 
. . . ye shall become as gods." This is applied 
to the life-essence or the ripened fruit of the tree. 
Adam and Eve had been expressly forbidden to eat 
of the tree until through their enlightened and puri- 
fied love they had been able to lift up the serpent- 
force and eat of the fruit with a godlike under- 
standing of its sacredness. Their disobedience was 
that they plucked and ate the unripened fruit in 
ignorance and merely for the gratification of their 
animal appetites. As the sex question is the one i 
great issue of the whole evolution of this planet, 
he who is misled on this subject takes a path that 
can lead only to destruction. Many well-meaning 
teachers as they gain some idea of the sacredness 
and purity of the interchange of the sex-forces are 
easily led into giving the subject undue promi- 
nence, into tearing down the veil which hangs be- 
fore the altar of all sacred mysteries, thus throwing 
themselves open, not only to the world's ridicule 
and censure, but also to the inrush of the hordes of 
the world's accumulated impure thoughts of phallic 
worship. This is inevitably true if their uncon- 
quered secret desires tend toward any form of self- 



258 The Voice of I sis 

indulgence. And very soon we find them permit- 
ting their minds to temporize with the world's 
standard of purity. Then departing little by little 
from the sacred instincts of purity and the innate 
modesty implanted in each heart to guide it — un- 
less ruthlessly torn out, smothered or argued down 
by the high-sounding sophistries so readily fur- 
nished by the worshipers at the shrine of sex- 
uality — they at length advocate either secret or semi- 
public orgies under the guise of spiritual ecstasy 
or some "advanced" conception of the sacredness 
of sexual intercourse. Others again make this sub- 
ject a cloak under which they can revel in licentious 
thoughts and make their pretended desire an excuse 
for promiscuous intercourse, claiming to be above 
the Law, yet all the time in bondage to the "old 
queen of the world," the most tyrannous and ruth- 
less of all rulers. 

There are today many, many entities on the 
astral-plane, some of them literally masters of evil, 
and others well-meaning but misled and misleading 
— called astral "guides" — who, taking advantage of 
this misconception of the symbol, are ready to give 
the most subtle teachings upon this subject to 
those who are awakening to the allurements of the 
astral-plane and who think everything that comes 
from that plane must necessarily be Divine. Hence, 
there are many well-meaning persons who are to- 
day unthinkingly taking the first steps on the down- 
ward path by letting their minds dwell continually 
upon this subject, thus being drawn into vortices 
of sex-thought which very quickly obsess them so 
that they can think and talk of little else. They are 
desirous of doing right but disregard the voice of 
Intuition and fail to use common-sense and hence 



Purification Versus Deification 259 

are misled on this point. There is nothing that so 
quickly leads to obsession as the constant dwelling 
upon the thoughts of sex. 

This whole symbol has been grossly misunder- 
stood. The serpent was Saturn the Initiator, and the 
day spoken of in which the Race should become as the 
gods has never yet dawned. To eat of the Tree of 
Life has nothing to do with the degradation of the 
physical creative act. The promise given to the Third 
Race — symbolized by Adam and Eve — that has been 
and still is being fulfilled was "cursed is the ground 
... in sorrow shalt thou bring forth." This was 
not an unjust punishment, for they were not left in 
ignorance. It was the wilful disobedience of the 
Third Race acting in spite of the teachings of their Di- 
vine Instructors — and brought to its greatest degrada- 
tion during the Fourth Race — which fastened the curse 
upon humanity. From the beginning of recorded his- 
tory, yea, even before recorded history, man has floated 
on a sea whose motive-power was this force, and 
whose tides alternated between the lowest depth of 
degradation and the uplifting and deification of this 
function under various forms of phallic worship. "It 
was only in the Fourth Race that man, who had lost 
all right to be considered Divine, resorted to body 
worship, in other words, Phallicism." * 

Whenever there has been an attempt to lift this sub- 
ject out of the mire, immediately some few have gone 
to the extreme and have placed it upon a pinnacle for 
worship. This, however, is even more disastrous to 
humanity than its degradation. The sex-force is 
always creative, and, when degraded and perverted 
from functioning according to the law of generation 
will c reate upon the astral-plane monsters which, by 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II, p. 297. 



260 The Voice of Isis 

their precipitating upon man sickness and disease — 
especially disorders of the mental and psychic facul- 
ties — will the more quickly bring about his bodily 
dissolution. It's deification creates a tempter, who, 
being clothed in garments of self-righteousness and 
absolute contentment with his own state, is endowed 
with an immense longevity which the monster does 
not possess, and therefore has the power to delude 
the unwary victim with plausible sophistry. 

This law is graphically illustrated in Richard Mans- 
field's version of the drama Peer Gynt, in which he 
meets his perverted astral creations upon the moun- 
tain. These entities follow him and call him father 
until his reason totters. All such creations man must 
face and redeem either in this or some future incar- 
nation, for like Peer Gynt he is their father. Their 
mother is that perverted feminine force an entitization 
of which is so graphically described by Eliphas Levi. 
"Knowest thou that old queen of the world who is 
on the march always and wearies never? Every un- 
curbed passion, every selfish pleasure, every licen- 
tious energy of humanity, and all its tyrannous weak- 
ness, go before the sordid mistress of our tearful val- 
ley. . . . That queen is old as time, but her skeleton 
is concealed in the wreckage of women's beauty, which 
she abstracts from their youth and their love. . . . 
Her livid and frozen body is clothed in polluted gar- 
ments and tattered winding sheets. . . . When she 
goes by, doors open of themselves ; she passes through 
walls ; she penetrates to the cabinets of kings ; she 
surprises the extortioners of the poor in their most 
secret orgies ; she sits down at their board, pours 
out their wine, grins at their songs with her gum- 
less teeth, takes the place of the lecherous courtesan 
hidden behind their curtains. She delights in the 



Purification Versus Deification 261 

vicinity of sleeping voluptuaries; she seeks their ca- 
resses as if she hoped to grow warm in their embrace, 
but she freezes all those whom she touches and her- 
self never kindles." * This seemingly fanciful picture 
refers to a great reality, for there is an entitized 
thought-form, born of man's lustful imaginings and 
woman's desires, which casts a glamour of youth 
and loveliness over man and appears in his dreams 
in the form of his most cherished ideal of woman- 
hood to tempt him and draw from him the creative 
life-force upon which she lives. She appears espe- 
cially to test those who are striving to purify their 
lives and conquer sex desire. If she is resisted and 
foiled in her purpose the glamour disappears and she 
is revealed as she is, the Ancient One, the Old Hag. 
To get at the truth underlying this question we 
must separate the Divine Creative Essence entirely 
from its physical vehicles and get away from all its 
lower manifestations. Up to the middle of the Third 
Race humanity was androgynous, but soon after the 
separation of the sexes the early Atlanteans made 
their first departure from right living by worshiping 
form, or the human body and its functions. This 
period is alluded to in the Bible, 2 where it says that 
"The Sons of God saw the daughters of men that 
they were fair ; and they took them wives of all which 
they chose." * Those called "sons of God" were the 
descendants of the first great spiritual Teachers 
(Rishis), while "the daughters of men" were what 
history refers to as the pre-Adamite races, which in 
the Bible were embraced under the symbol of Lillith. 
They were the mindless Races or the Races which had 
not yet received the divine spark from the Mind- 

1 Transcendental Magic, Levi. 

• Genesis VI, 1-4. 

• See als» "The Death of Lillis" in Thomas Moore's The Loves tf the 
Angels. 



262 The Voice of Isis 

Born. To bring the spark of mind to the mindless 
Races by taking them to wife was the duty of the 
"Sons of God." The sin was in using the power of 
mind to enhance the pleasures of mere sex con- 
tact. This was the beginning of the perversion and 
worship of sex. "The Demon of Pride, Lust, Re- 
bellion and Hatred, had no being before the appear- 
ance of physical conscious man. It is man who has 
begotten and nurtured the fiend, and allowed it to 
develop in his heart; it is he, again, who has con- 
taminated the Indwelling God in himself, by linking 
the pure Spirit with the impure Demon of Matter." x 
Since that early day, with every attempt to reform 
the thought of humanity on the sex question, there 
comes up this old mistake of man's deification of 
matter in his worship of the mere physical expres- 
sion rather than the Divine Creative Force. But such 
attempts to reform are necessary, for only by a right 
understanding of this vital problem can man attain the 
ultimate goal of his evolution. 

Therefore we wish to make it very clear to our stu- 
dents that, although the world is wrong in its atti- 
tude of looking upon this whole relationship as vile 
and wicked, and while we most ardently desire to 
purify the world's polluted stream of thought on 
this subject, still it is nevertheless true that the 
world's rules of conduct, established as a minimum 
after ages of experience, must be observed. Under- 
neath every law of morality and every convention 
of society there stands a Divine Truth from which 
the law or conventionality has grown. Nothing can 
endure from generation to generation which is not 
rooted in Truth, although much evil may be grafted 
upon this root. Although from time to time, through 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. II., p. 287. 



Purification Versus Deification 263 

the rebellion of great reformers against conventions 
and man-made laws, humanity has advanced, still in 
every such instance the rebellion was not so much 
against the convention or law itself as against the 
abuses and evils which were grafted upon it. 

All that pertains to the sex relations belongs to 
the deep, mysterious workings of Divinity and is 
not to be brought publicly before the world. Hu- 
manity must travel the path of generation, until 
by conquering — which means learning all its lessons — 
it finds the gate of regeneration. Just as this was 
symbolized by Noah's ark, into which the animals 
went two by two, so must humanity enter the Ark 
of Safety — the Temple not made with hands, the 
ark built after the pattern given by God, the only 
thing that can ride the tempestuous sea of humanity — 
two by two, male and female. Until these twain, 
whom only God can make one flesh have literally 
deified, not the physical organs of generation, but 
the Divine Creative Force and by together learning 
the lessons of love and sacrifice, have discovered that 
there is Something apart, above and beyond mere 
physical union which can be brought forth only by 
the twain, and that this Something can never be 
brought down into matter, they can never say "It 
is finished." The very thought of opening the door 
of the sanctuary where this holv Something shines 
above the tabernacle, to an outsider or to a third 
party, let alone the gaze of the multitude, absolutely 
destroys it; for this Something is an emanation from 
the Omnipotent Creative Force of Divinity making 
the twain one in heaven although on earth they still 
manifest as two. It is this Divine Force which com- 
pletes the Trinity; for that which completes the 
Trinity must always be Divine, never human. The 



264 The Voice of his 

top of the triangle must always be pointing up with 
the flame of the Divine Creative Force rising from 
its apex. To debase this symbol and try to represent 
it in matter by three human personalities ; to permit 
any but the twain to enter the ark, is to point the 
apex of the triangle toward earth. In such a case 
the Divine Flame or the Fire of the Lord at once be- 
comes the burning, consuming fire of passion which 
destroys the false worshipers. In other words, if 
through sexual excesses indulged in under the name 
of worship an attempt is made to create earthly fires, 
i. e., sex-passion, upon the altar, you are like the 
priests of the false Baal — worshipers of perverted 
sex-force — unable to call down the Fire of the Lord 
to consume your sacrifice; but if, through devotion, 
pure love, and in the sanctity of absolute privacy, 
two Souls reach up to heaven and ask the divine bless- 
ing upon their union the Fire of the Lord descends 
and makes their sacrifice complete. 

These departures from Purity — which, alas, almost 
everyone who has had much experience among so- 
called occult teachings has no doubt met with to a 
greater or lesser degree — do not take place all at once ; 
they are insidious. The evil astral entities having 
once gained an entrance to the aura of the pupils, 
usually over the line of ambition, vanity, etc., at first 
flatter them with the idea that they are chosen to be 
great world-leaders or teachers, then their animal 
nature is stirred up and its manifestations disguised 
with high-sounding terms ; or perhaps some mys- 
terious relationship is hinted at to make the first 
departure from Purity see-, natural and necessary, 
such as dual personalities requiring more than one 
vehicle to express the same Soul, etc. But no matter 
how brought about, the end is as sure as it is pitiful, 



Purification Versus Deification 265 

pitiful because the deluded one thinks the guidance is 
Divine. Such entities, animated by their own designs 
and given increased power by the perversion of the vic- 
tims' sex-forces, teach them that there is some special 
reason why they are exempt from laws that are well 
enough for less evolved humanity; that true "free- 
dom" includes freedom in sex relations, even that 
such sexual excesses are the only path to the heights 
of spiritual attainment. The instant such a departure 
from the one Law of Purity takes place the Divine 
Triangle is pointed downward; they have attempted 
to confine Spirit in matter, and like a consuming fire 
it will spread and will feed upon, first their higher 
ideals, then upon all their principles of right thought 
and conduct, until all that was beautiful in their na- 
tures is consumed, leaving only their gross and 
material nature which, no matter how they cloak it 
with the garments of sanctity and hypocrisy, the world 
will have no difficulty in recognizing. If the physical 
body„ of such a victim is coarse and strong its 
grossness becomes more and more apparent, but if 
the body is sensitive and finely organized such prac- 
tices quickly bring about various nervous and mental 
affections, especially epilepsy, and in some cases 
insanity. 

This brings us to one of our fundamental teach- 
ings which we repeat and emphasize here, namely, 
no matter what the apparent source of any teaching 
and no matter how beautiful the language used, do 

NOT ACCEPT IT UNLESS IT MEETS THE TEST OF PURITY 

and common-sense, — does not violate the moral code 
and is confirmed by the Intuition of your own Soul. It 
is only common-sense to demand that teachings which 
profess a higher standard of purity than that of the 



266 The Voice of Isis 

world must at least include what the experience of 
the world holds as essential. 

The woman referred to in our opening text sym- 
bolizes the mother-force or sex-force degraded. The 
cup of pure gold which she holds symbolizes some- 
thing sacred which through her impurity is defiled 
and filled with abominations. In this case the cup 
symbolizes the place of generation through which the 
Divine Creative Force should manifest as regenera- 
tion, but which instead is filled with the abominations 
of man's own imaginings. She was ultimately con- 
sumed by the karmic fires spoken of above. 1 

As to our definite teachings on this subject we 
would say to our pupils use common-sense. Avoid 
both the Scylla of degradation and the Charybdis of 
undue exaltation of this force. Obey what the world 
calls the moral code, but infuse into the dead-letter 
of that code the Spirit of Divine Love. Realize that 
physical marriage is but the gross and earthly coun- 
terpart of the Divine Marriage of the Soul and that 
mistaken marriages which are not marriages of the 
Soul can be avoided if you will prayerfully listen to 
the Voice of Intuition and are not carried away by 
emotion, passion or desire for worldly gain. Above 
all examine your own heart and drive out all lustful 
desires and imaginings, for only the pure in heart 
shall see God. Purity of heart and mind will be a 
shield and buckler to protect you in the hour of 
temptation and guide your feet in safety over the 
narrow bridge which separates animal desire from 
spiritual ecstasy. 

Sexual union is but the physical expression of man's 
ability to reach up to Divinity. For in the union of 
perfectly affinitized Souls there is a force brought into 

^Revelation XVII, 16. 



Purification Versus Deification 267 

action which is greater than the physical senses can 
express, the senses are transcended and the Souls are 
lifted from human into Divine Love. This is the point 
where Divine Love touches and overlaps human love, 
but only when human love has grown so pure and 
sacred and holy that nothing human can express it, 
because it transcends the powers of the human mind 
to grasp. Only then is a new force brought into 
manifestation, a force which is the vehicle for a direct 
manifestation of the Divine. This force at one end 
unites into one flesh the twain, and at the other end 
unites them to the Godhead, or their mutual Father- 
in-heaven, thus making the perfect triangle. In such 
a union God is manifested through perfected and 
purified human love. 

Let no one, however, be discouraged or think the 
day of attainment so far distant that there is no use 
trying, for the first step is right thinking on this sub- 
ject; and the next is so to live as to be ready and 
worthy, for literally ye know neither the day nor 
the hour when the Son of Man cometh in His 
glory. The glory is the illumination which comes to 
every Soul who reaches this ideal conception of love, 
where the Divine overlaps and perfects the human. 
Some, having taken steps on this Path in past incar- 
nations, have now to learn certain minor parts of 
the Law. They may find themselves compelled to 
learn these lessons alone, without an earthly com- 
panion to help them, but this does not prevent them 
from learning the lessons. If karmic Law has 
brought some close to the borderland between the 
human and the Divine through suffering, disappoint- 
ment or ideal love trampled in the mire, nevertheless 
they can learn their lessons and often learn them 
more thoroughly than those more blessed, although 



268 The Voice of Isis 

forced to seek love only in the Divine because the 
human has failed them. There will come an incar- 
nation when each Soul must step over the threshold 
between ideal mortal love and Divine Love hand in 
hand with the companion best fitted to make that 
correlation perfect. Nothing- can be gained, however, 
by fretting or chafing at the Law, for what is really 
yours can only come to you when both are ready to 
receive. 

Each can help himself best by helping all human- 
ity; for as Nature abhors a vacuum, the more 
love and purity you pour out for humanity the more 
rushes in to take its place. Help by spreading the 
thought of Purity regarding this subject; by giving 
this subject its proper place, for it was never intended 
to be considered publicly or mentioned lightly. True 
love must be nurtured in modesty and privacy, fed 
on the unseen forces from Divinity and grow natur- 
ally. It must be the culmination of natural develop- 
ment rather than the point from which development 
starts. 

It is not possible in this age for all to reach this 
point of spiritual as well as physical union, for, alas, 
too many have walked in the world's by-paths until 
their garments (bodies and minds) are polluted with 
the vileness which man has created around this holy 
function. Therefore such must willingly stand still 
in the burnings of karmic Law until all that is impure 
is consumed, and until their own true companion, who 
is also being purified, is brought to them in fulfill- 
ment of the law of exact Justice, that they two, hand 
in hand, having faced and successfully passed the 
Angel of the Flaming Sword, may enter into the 
Garden and there meet the Lord face to face. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE MEMORY OF PAST LIVES. 

"Both thou and I have passed through many 
births. . . . Mine are known unto me, but 
thou knowest not of thine." The Bhagavad-Gita, 
Chapter iv. 

"Tell him, O Aspirant, that true devotion may 
bring him back the knowledge, that knowledge 
which was his in former births." The Voice of 
the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment II. 

The memory of past lives is given not for amuse- 
ment, nor to satisfy vain curiosity, but to inculcate 
a needed lesson. As we stated in the chapter on 
Karma, the destiny of each Soul is ultimately to 
take its proper place in the Divine Plan. While 
the Soul may spend many lives in perfecting its 
powers and working out minor Karma, still at cer- 
tain cycles — usually every seventh life — the destiny 
of the Soul will be its main task, retarded or accel- 
erated according to the Karma to be worked out, 
just as the seventh wave of the sea rises higher on 
the shore than the other six. When a person is 
ready to take a decided step in his work of destiny 
he must see what he has accomplished toward it in 
the past, and how to avoid the mistakes and side 
issues that led him astray in former lives. He may 
not remember all the details, but, step by step as 
he needs them, the main lessons will be revealed to 
him. If he is about to repeat a previous blunder, 
the memory of it will be given him, often in a dream 
or vision. And if he is not carried away by the 
mere remembering, or does not push it aside as a 
fantasy or delusion, and if he sincerely desires light 



270 The Voice of Isis 

and help, and is striving to follow his intuitions, he 
will see the lesson and understand its application to 
his present condition. There is no chance remem- 
bering. All follows an exact law. It comes when 
the Higher Self sees that the personality is ready — 
when the physical brain has been trained to vibrate to 
some extent in response to the will of the Higher 
Self. 

Many ask, "Why is not the memory of past lives 
more common?" There is a deep reason for this. 
In our evolution we have passed through many sad 
and embittering experiences which, if remembered, 
would so depress our spirits, so discourage and 
hamper us that we would make little progress. Also, 
did we remember who we were and who our present 
companions were, in many cases we would find it 
so hard to forgive the injuries, so hard to forget the 
troubles we had passed through in connection with 
them that our spiritual growth would be retarded. 
Since the Law, acting as Karma, demands perfect 
compensation or adjustment, one great object in 
each new life is to readjust the mistakes of the past. 
When an opportunity to do so comes to us in this 
life, if we could remember all that had passed it 
would be far harder to "Love your enemies, do good 
to them which hate you, bless them that curse you, 
and pray for them which despitefully use you." 
Hence it is in love and wisdom that the knowledge 
of past lives is withheld. 

Many think that could they remember who they 
were in the past it would be all joy and wonder, 
but in the majority of cases it would be a bitter dis- 
appointment and a sad and depressing remember- 
ing. Therefore we will never be permitted to re- 
member our past lives until we have advanced 



The Memory of Past Lives 271 

beyond the point where the griefs, the ills and the 
unkindnesses done us can affect us, make us worry 
or become discouraged and thus retard our prog- 
ress. We will not remember until we have gained 
that poise which nothing can disturb ; until we 
have become centered in the thought that to manifest 
Divine Love is all there is worth striving for. 

Most Souls find the memory of the trials and sor- 
rows of one life as much as the personality can 
bear, therefore the complete remembrance of all it 
had endured in its many lives would tend to crush 
it. It is memory that haunts; that drives to insan- 
ity. No one day can hold enough sorrow to dis- 
hearten utterly the personality; it is the accumu- 
lated burden that overwhelms. A most important 
lesson to learn is to put from you all that is past. 
Live in the present. "Let the dead past bury its 
dead." Until the Soul has learned that what is 
passed is registered within the Real Self as a lesson 
learned — a needed experience gained — and can let 
it go and not be crushed by its memory ; until the 
personality shows its strength of character by not 
brooding over mistakes ; until it has exemplified 
this stability in its present life, its Heavenly 
Father, in loving mercy, draws a veil over the 
memory of previous incarnations. When it can 
bear without flinching or shrinking, the memory 
of the sorrows of one life it will be ready to bear 
a more extended memory. 

Another reason why we do not remember is 
that at each incarnation the Soul clothes itself in a 
new body, the brain cells of which have never 
responded to the past conditions, and only when 
the brain is capable of responding to the memory 
stored up in the Higher Self, can that memory be 



272 The Voice of Isis 

impressed upon the waking consciousness. In 
other words, the personality, per se, cannot remem- 
ber the past because it has experienced but the 
present life. Another reason is that many, many 
of our lives have been so common-place or triv- 
ial that they have registered little of value in the 
Real Self, hence have little of importance to re- 
member. For out of each life it is only those expe- 
riences and those lessons which have made for Soul- 
growth that are immortalized by being registered 
in the Real Self. Only good is immortal; evil is 
but transitory. 

The memory of a past life is often awakened by 
reading about or seeing the picture of some histor- 
ical character. This arouses a consciousness of 
having lived at that time or in that place, or per- 
haps, that the reader was himself the character 
mentioned. This is apt to give rise to ridicule, for 
many upon whom the memory of past lives is 
dawning seem never to have been anything but 
kings and queens, or notable characters in history. 
There is a reason for this, for, like most mistakes, 
it is rather a misunderstanding or misapplication of 
the remembrance than a deliberate attempt to de- 
ceive. It is a result of ignorance of the Law. In 
such a case the probability is that the person did 
live at the period remembered, and perhaps took 
a prominent part in the events enacted, but he was 
not necessarily the principal character. The feel- 
ing of peculiar sympathy or aversion that one feels 
in such a case is precisely what he felt at the time 
of the event. In the past he may have been deeply 
interested in the characters under consideration, 
and fond of imagining himself in their place. Thus, 
when the attention is turned to those old times it 



The Memory of Past Lives 273 

awakens the old currents of feeling, and he thinks 
he actually was what in the past he had wished to 
be. Often there is another explanation. The noted 
personage may have stood out as the key-note of 
his time, and the circumstances that produced his 
eminence were lessons that many other Souls 
learned. In fact, the leading character enacted the 
drama for all the lesser personalities belonging to 
the same group, and all learned the lesson through 
the one. 

The great body of humanity is like the physical 
body, composed of cells and organs, each with its 
center of force (nucleus) which takes up impres- 
sions and transmits them to all the atoms compos- 
ing that center or organ. The hand learns to exe- 
cute a certain movement and every cell of each 
finger retains the impress or latent memory of its 
share in that movement. So the cells of every 
organ learn their lessons not so much as separate 
cells, but all together as an organ, viz., a hand, a 
foot, a head, a heart, et cetera. For example, 
through the action of Abraham Lincoln the whole 
nation learned that slavery should be and could be 
abolished, and the lesson was impressed more or 
less deeply on each Soul according to its sympa- 
thy or activity in the matter; but only Abraham 
Lincoln actually freed the slaves. He could not 
have done this, however, without the aid of the 
thought-force of the nation. He was the executor of 
the will of those who thought freedom. 

Every character in history had many persons 
who belonged to the same group — to the same na- 
tion — who were carried along in evolution by the 
same current; who learned by the failure or prof- 
ited by the success of that character. As the Soul 



274 The Voice of I sis 

at first remembers only the most important events, 
personages and lessons impressed upon its con- 
sciousness, when that memory begins to be awak- 
ened it is natural for it to think it was the central 
figure. 

Many psychics receive messages which they inter- 
pret to mean that they were the Virgin Mother, St. 
John, John the Baptist, Elijah, Moses, or some 
other noted Bible character, and find to their dis- 
may that many others have been told the same. 
Since they are unable to conceive how all could 
have been the one character, much confusion and 
loss of faith in their guidance results. The true ex- 
planation is that all such personages were types, or 
expressions, of some of the cosmic Rays — differ- 
ing phases of experience through which their 
Father had passed in His evolution. When a dis- 
ciple is told, for instance, that she was the Virgin 
Mary, it means that she belongs to that expression 
of the Father Ray, i. e., was emanated and started 
on her earthly evolution during the period when 
the Father was correlating with the Virgin Moth- 
er-principle, when He was experiencing the lessons 
of the Great Mother, Isis. And so on through the 
whole list of characters. 

There are hundreds who are sure they were 
Mary, Queen of Scots ; hundreds who were Mar- 
tin Luther, Julius Csesar, Cleopatra, Helen of 
Troy, et cetera. If they understood the Law, how- 
ever, it would be quite easy to determine 
whether or not they were great personages whose 
names are given. A careful study of the character, 
giving due consideration to the three streams of 
evolution, 1 (physical, mental and spiritual) will 
readily determine this. Study their mistakes and 

ilSee Chapter XIII. 



The Memory of Past Lives 275 

successes and try to calculate what would be 
needed, according to the Law of Compensation 
(Karma), to overcome the mistakes or reap the re- 
wards. Study their mentality and your own, and 
know well there is no retrogression. There are ups 
and downs that may seem like retrogression but 
they are like the ups and downs of a gravity rail- 
way; the downs are always above the level of the 
starting point. A personage of historical promi- 
nence may at this time be incarnated in a very 
lowly station, but he will still have the same char- 
acteristics that made him great. He may be placed 
in a lowly station to learn lessons of patience and 
humility, but his character will still be great, and 
the important lesson learned in the prominent life 
will be indelibly impressed upon his present per- 
sonality. If he were the central figure of the 
group, either for good or evil, he will always be a 
central figure, no matter in what walk of life he 
may incarnate. An Abraham Lincoln might incar- 
nate as a plough-boy where conditions made edu- 
cation and culture almost impossible, but he would 
always have the ability of a Lincoln to master con- 
ditions. 

Many declare they find it impossible to live out 
their true selves ; but the inner development will 
always manifest, no matter what the environment. 
If a Soul fails to demonstrate that it is spiritually 
advanced it simply means that it has not attained 
to or created the state it desires to manifest. The 
pilgrimage of the Soul is like an earthly journey. 
We may see the distant goal yet may have many 
sad experiences and much weary travel ere we 
reach it. If one is absorbed in petty cares, to the 
exclusion of higher aims, it means that he has not 



276 The Voice of I sis 

outgrown petty conditions ; for if he had he would 
find time to follow the higher leadings and mani- 
fest them in his life. Abraham Lincoln found time 
to study law while splitting rails; Isaac Watt dis- 
covered the force of steam while apparently ab- 
sorbed in the petty care of minding the baby. Al- 
though environment does modify the expression, still 
the real inner development will always manifest, no 
matter what the environment. Accomplishment in 
spite of difficulties is the best proof of inner devel- 
opment and strength; for difficulties only spur us 
on to express the powers we have won. 

The general rule is that, after one has cultivated his 
mental faculties and developed his brain to a high 
degree, he passes through an incarnation devoid of all 
chance for education. This is, firstly, to give him 
an opportunity to develop his heart qualities; and, 
secondly, to prove how much of the former culture 
he has really assimilated. No one can prove his 
character unless he is forced to depend on his real 
inner powers. Hence, no matter what the gain has 
been in the past, whether toward physical, intel- 
lectual or spiritual perfection, he must, of neces- 
sity, pass an incarnation where all outward helps 
toward the things attained are lacking, that he may 
prove himself. 

When one is told that in the past he was some 
great personage, it is wise to look up the history 
and customs of the time indicated, and search for 
any glaring discrepancies between his own char- 
acter and the character of the person under con- 
sideration. If discrepancies are found they indi- 
cate error somewhere. For example, if a woman is 
told that she was an Egyptian Priestess, or if a man 
is told that he was beheaded while King of Egypt, 



The Memory of Past Lives 277 

a glance at history will show that the Egyptians 
carefully excluded women from participating in the 
Mysteries, hence there were no Egyptian Priest- 
esses. History will also show that the Egyptians 
had a superstitious horror of any sort of mutila- 
tion of the body; this was inculcated by the funda- 
mental tenets of their religion. Under no circum- 
stances was a king or even a person of common 
social rank mutilated either before or after death. 
The worst possible punishment for the lowest 
criminal was the cutting off of his ears. Therefore 
this would most convincingly point to an error in 
such a message. In this instance we find that 
Egypt was once overrun with foreigners, much as 
it is at the present time. Some of them were kings 
and queens who followed the customs and relig- 
ions of their own country. There were also num- 
erous cities whose names have long been lost to 
history which while paying tribute to Egypt and 
inhabited largely by Egyptians, nevertheless fol- 
lowed their own customs. Thus a woman might 
have been a Priestess or a king might have been 
beheaded while in Egypt and yet not be Egyp- 
tians. This will show how easily psychic messages 
can be confused and how absurd it makes one to 
repeat them without verifying them. While such 
discrepancies do not always mean that the one giv- 
ing the information has misled him, yet, under such 
circumstances, a careful investigation of the mes- 
sage, and a consideration of its source, is advisable. 
It may be, however, that he has misinterpreted the 
message ; his brain may have given it a twist in 
accord with his personal bias. A careful study of 
history, together with a sincere prayer for light 
and help, will generally straighten the matter out. 



278 The Voice of Isis 

It has become the custom for untrained or pseudo 
psychics to flatter their friends or sitters by telling 
them they were great personages in the past. In 
this connection it is a good plan never to believe 
such tales unless confirmed by your own Soul or by 
history. For all must come under the law of prob- 
ability and common-sense. 

The whole object of rebirth is for each Soul to 
attain all-around Soul-perfection, learn all the les- 
sons life can teach, and thus be prepared to do its 
work in the Grand Plan. Even if it were possible 
for a man to gain all knowledge and have all ex- 
perience in one life, nevertheless the stupendous 
task of evolution, from an atom to a God, would 
require incalculable aeons. Comparing our life 
period to a day, as well might we expect a child to 
acquire the experience and wisdom of a life-time 
between sunrise and sunset. If such a prodigy 
were possible, evolution would still be unsatisfied, 
for the child would have neither the ability nor the 
organism whereby to utilize the knowledge and do 
the work of a man ; for it would not have reached 
man's estate. Perfection could not be attained in 
one life. 

When a student is earnestly and sincerely seeking 
for light, and is striving toward self-mastery, he fre- 
quently gets a strong impression that he has a special 
work to do. This is generally the first glimmerings 
of a bona fide memory of the past and of his Soul- 
destiny. It is frequently given in dreams, and perhaps 
is remembered in the waking consciousness only as 
an intangible impression. Many wonder why they 
must grope so long in the dark. But here again there 
is a reason. The Soul must struggle toward the light 
alone, just as a plant by its struggles gains the 



The Memory of Past Lives 279 

strength to push up through the earth to the sunlight. 

One may be given the outline of the work which 
he, both karmicly and constitutionally, is destined 
to accomplish, but the exact manner of its ful- 
fillment is always left to his own judgment. He is 
helped to think and use his own powers of judgment 
to decide wisely. He is shown the Goal and the Path, 
then is left to his own devices as to the best manner 
of following it. His judgment may be at fault, and 
he may make mistakes, but if he is working in sin- 
cerity and love for his fellow men, the One guiding 
him must let him experiment. The Masters dare 
not interfere, for They know that strength and wis- 
dom come from learning lessons, and if the pupil is 
doing the best he can it will be but a matter of time 
ere he will reach the end of his mistaken line of ac- 
tivity. 

If a memory of a past mistake is necessary it 
will be given him, but if the exact step in his 
future work were mapped out for him he would 
become a mere puppet — the executor of another's 
will — and not a free agent. Perhaps when the out- 
line of this work is given him, the pupil makes the 
mistake of thinking that he is ready to begin at once. 
In reality the command is to begin the work of prep- 
aration. Such a disciple is in the position of a child 
who heedlessly rushes off before he has heard what 
his father really desires, or how he must prepare him- 
self for the task; he hears the command "work" but 
does not wait for the end of the sentence. No one 
is ever required to do work for which he is not 
prepared. A teacher would not teach advanced sub- 
jects without special training; a physician would not 
prescribe without years of technical study; a man 
would not be placed in charge of a bank or business 



280 The Voice of Isis 

concern without long years of special training for 
such work; and yet many a psychic who hears the 
cry: "Son, go work today in my vineyard," never 
stops to hear more, nor dreams that any preparation 
is necessary. In fact, such usually take great pride 
in their attitude of trust, that they have no need of 
preparation or special knowledge; that their Heavenly 
Father will guide and teach them in all things. 
While it is true that they will be guided and helped, 
yet there is an old axiom which says: "God helps 
him who helps himself," which, being interpreted, 
means that he who uses common-sense, and places 
himself in the current, or trains his brain mind so it 
can receive and comprehend the higher truths, makes 
intelligent help a possibility, while he who depends 
entirely upon astral communications must make him- 
self so negative that his mind is a fertile field for 
the sowing of tares by the enemy who is always wait- 
ing to sow them among the wheat while the husband- 
men sleep. 

There is no royal road to Divine Wisdom. There 
is, however, a straight and narrow Path to spiritual 
unfoldment. It is found only by wedding Knowledge 
to Understanding and Love to Wisdom. It must be 
trodden step by step, often in weariness and with 
bleeding feet. Even Jesus, although His mission was 
announced both at his birth and at His baptism, spent 
over thirty years studying with the teachers, adepts 
and Masters, before His brain mind was capable of 
correlating with the Divine Wisdom of which His 
Soul was fully cognizant. While book-learning is 
in no way necessary for spiritual development, yet 
it is necessary if one is to be a teacher of the higher 
laws and the higher philosophy, or is to be a leader 
in spiritual thought, to perfect the instrument (brain) 



The Memory of Past Lives 281 

through which the Divine inspiration is seeking ex- 
pression. 

The astral world is full of false teachers who 
promise many wonderful things and seek to gain 
your attention by telling you how great or how 
good you are; hence discrimination is the first faculty 
that must be perfected. It can only be gained by 
careful training and a thorough understanding of the 
Law. The astral-plane is called the "Hall of Learn- 
ing," but the pupil is warned that "In it thy soul will 
find the blossoms of life, but under every flower a 
serpent coiled." x No purity of heart or desire for 
truth can protect from this serpent's sting those who 
wilfully neglect to cultivate their minds and familiar- 
ize themselves with the laws of that plane. 

If a person has not the opportunity to carry on a 
study of the laws and philosophy of the Higher Life 
this is proof positive that such an one is not yet ready 
to teach. He may be selected as a teacher, but for 
the time he is being prepared along a particular line. 
For the training of the heart, or the love-nature for 
obedience and for ardor and for love for humanity, 
and the perfecting of patience by the cheerful per- 
formance of daily tasks, has first to be developed in 
the character. When the pupil is considered by the 
Master to be a fit instrument in these respects (obedi- 
ence, love, sympathy, patience, etc.) then will he be 
brought into an environment which will give him the 
opportunity to acquire a knowledge of the spiritual 
laws and the philosophy. The pupil is never asked 
to leave a plain duty undone to take up the work of 
teacher; for just so long as a duty confronts him 
which would prevent him from beginning the work, 
he should know that his preparation is not complete. 

1 The Voice of Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment I. 



282 The Voice of his 

Instead of chafing at the confining bonds he should 
cheerfully go ahead preparing himself in body, mind 
and Soul, remembering that he has all eternity before 
him, and that it is much easier to make up for delay 
than to rectify a vital mistake made through precipe 
tation. When he perceives the outline of a work to 
be done, let him prepare himself to do it to the best 
of his ability. But let him be humble and be ready 
to see and acknowledge his shortcomings but without 
exaggerating them and the Guiding Hand will not 
let him stray far from the Path. 

Pupils should, therefore, study most carefully the 
law of all spiritual unfoldment. Never does the 
Higher Self make a mere automaton of a pupil, nor 
sow the seed of final failure by flattering him or by 
appeals to his ambition. On the contrary his earliest 
memories are more apt to be of mistakes than of 
triumphs, and the first lessons given will be those 
which will inculcate humility. His training is a 
process of guiding, overshadowing and the awakening 
of all dormant faculties. And once awakened each 
faculty must be put to the most severe tests ere the 
pupil is ready to be used. Only thus can he raise his 
vibrations to the spiritual key-note. Never is the 
pupil told to do this or do that blindly. He may be 
the victim of the arbitrary commands of some entity 
who is taking advantage of his lack of training and 
discrimination to use him as a catspaw. If so, he will 
find that obedience will lead him to violate common- 
sense and bring him into all kinds of trouble. When 
such commands are received interiorly the pupil must 
consider them with the gravest doubt, and is perfectly 
justified in refusing to obey; for arbitrary commands 
are against the zvhole law of evolution, and are there- 



The Memory of Past Lives 283 

fore never given by the Higher Self or by the Mas- 
ters of the Great White Lodge. 

Absolute obedience to the Higher Guidance is re- 
quired of all who would do the Master's work but 
such guidance never violates common-sense, and even 
the vow of obedience is never required until the pupil 
through repeated experiences has learned to have im- 
plicit faith in his Guidance. 




CHAPTER XXI. 

THE CYCLE OF NECESSITY. 

"I and my Father are one." 

The Higher Self is the Father-in-heaven who is 
continually striving to lead and guide the human per- 
sonality (the son) among the rocks and quicksands 
of physical existence, called "the cycle of necessity," 
back to conscious oneness with Him. Until the per- 
sonality can consciously receive its teachings direct, 
through The Voice of The Silence, the Higher Self 
must take advantage of every opportunity and event 
in the earth-life to impress upon the physical brain- 
cells of the personality, the main lesson which the 
incarnation is intended to teach. For every earth-life 
is carefully chosen by the reincarnating Ego, and is 
brought about under the best conditions and in the 
best environment possible, under the limitations of 
karmic law, to learn a certain great lesson necessary 
for the next step in experience. That is, the environ- 
ment chosen is not the easiest or most pleasant for 
the personality, but the one which through its temp- 
tations and trials the omniscience of the Higher Self 
deems best calculated to develop the Soul-qualities 
necessary for spiritual advance. Often the person- 
ality, owing to the denseness and sluggishness of the 
particles of its physical brain centers, fails to respond 
to the vibrations of this higher Intelligence and can- 
not understand the guidance, hence ignorantly places 
karmic barriers between itself and the desired end. 
In such cases life itself must be the teacher. Indeed, 
life after life is often spent in learning one great 
lesson. 



The Cycle of Necessity 285 

Since the personality has free-will, within certain 
karmic limits, it cannot be coerced into following its 
Divine Guidance, hence if like a boy playing truant 
from school it refuses to learn its lessons it must 
return day after day (life after life) to the same 
lesson until the lesson is built into the character as 
a Soul-quality. Therefore it is of the greatest im- 
portance for all students of the higher life to at least 
begin to learn how to control the higher centers of 
their physical brains and render them capable of 
registering the vibrations sent them from higher 
Intelligences. Like wireless telegraphy, no matter 
how perfectly the messages are sent, unless the re- 
ceiving apparatus is attuned to the key-note of the 
sender the messages cannot be intelligently received. 

As all Souls are but differing expressions of the 
One Life, each must bring back into the One Life a 
special experience. Unity does not mean an ever- 
lasting recurrence of one experience for all, but all 
experiences in the One. As each different part of 
the body has its own function, the experience of which 
is subject to and is registered in the brain — the sum 
total of the experiences of all organs and parts being 
necessary to complete a Man — so are all Soul-experi- 
ences comprised in the One Life. Thus is personality 
transmuted into Individuality. Individuality is never 
lost; it grows more complete as it finds the comple- 
mentary phases of individuality in all the units of the 
One. The more a man individualizes the use of his 
hands, feet or brain, the more perfect a man is he; 
for if the hands or feet or brain are left to follow 
their own subconscious (animal) instincts, the man 
remains but a clod. Only man has the power to indi- 
vidualize himself, and the urge toward this advance 
is imparted from the Higher Self or Real Ego. A 



286 The Voice of Isis 

Master is one who has trained all parts and functions 
of his body to their highest possible individual devel- 
opment and holds them all subject to his will. Ani- 
mals are subject to the will of man and can only gain 
what is called "higher intelligence" in an animal, 
through the emanations of man's thought and will. 
Some animals can respond readily to man and some 
cannot. Some men can easily respond to the Higher 
Self and learn, while others less evolved cannot re- 
spond so readily. Yet all Souls bring their individual 
contribution of experiences into the One Life. 

Animals seem to follow more perfectly than man 
the laws of the One Life and are less rebellious than 
man. The reason for this is that animals lack free- 
will and blindly and obediently follow the Group- 
soul of the species. Thus all wolves have the same 
instincts, all serpents the same characteristics, etc. 1 
Hence you know what to expect from any animal 
of a given species under similar conditions. 

In the beginning each Soul is given its particular 
work and place in the Grand Plan, and the experience 
necessary to attain this end must be gained by clothing 
itself in various personalities. The faults and draw- 
backs which prevent this attainment loom so darkly 
before the Soul that paths are chosen which, no mat- 
ter what the suffering involved may be, will correct 
the faults and remove the barriers to the fulfillment 
of that Soul's destiny. Perhaps the destiny of the 
Soul is to be an important worker for the upliftment 
of humanity, with a definite place in that work. Such 
a Soul may begin the work, or at least lay the founda- 
tions, in the earlier incarnations when the Soul is 
young (in experience) and has not gone far from the 
sheltering love of the Father's house, but later, the 

1 See Letters From the Teacher, Curtiss, Chapter X. 



The Cycle of Necessity 287 

various personalities built up life after life by the 
Soul to use as instruments, may become rebellious, 
stray from the Path and set up side-issues, either as 
desires or complications— all of which must later be 
experienced and their essence of wisdom and power 
assimilated. For there must be free-will. The per- 
sonality must be free to choose its path, to follow or 
not to follow its Divine Guidance. Man alone, of all 
the animals, can choose whether he will or will not 
listen and obey. 

The Father (the Higher Self) gives to each son 
(the personality) the portion of goods belonging to 
him ; that out of which he must weave his destiny. 
The son then departs into the far country of physical 
existence. Each son has his own portion — the portion 
belonging to him by right. If by karmic action he 
has earned a pleasant portion — wealth, position, and 
love of friends— with these he must cultivate Soul- 
growth and bring back to his Father's house the 
greatest experiences and the deepest lessons of Divine 
Love that it is possible to gamer through those 
earthly blessings. If he has earned or chosen as his 
portion poverty, loneliness, sorrow and sickness he 
must garner the golden grains of wisdom from these 
experiences also, for all experiences are necessary. 
But the Soul who can learn from another's experi- 
ence need not pass that way itself. The personality 
must learn, either by actual experience or by observa- 
tion and sympathy with others, that the side-issues 
are not what the Higher Self desires it to experience. 
And it must ultimately learn the great lesson, attain 
the position and do the work mapped out for it from 
the beginning. 

After eons of time and myriads of incarnations the 
Soul gradually gains more and more power over the 



288 The Voice of his 

various personalities through which it functions, and, 
center by center, subjects their physical matter to its 
own vibrations. The Soul thus learns by experience 
how to manipulate matter and how better to express 
itself through a physical instrument — the body. When 
the Ego has succeeded in building up an instrument 
into whose physical brain-centers a sufficient number 
of spiritualized atoms which vibrate in harmony with 
the Higher Self are emplanted, the instrument or per- 
sonality may be said to be unfolding its inner facul- 
ties. At this stage of evolution the greatest care is 
needed; for, as indicated in a previous chapter, 1 there 
are many enemies waiting for the opportunity to push 
back into the darkness, or mislead for their own per- 
sonal ends, the one who has labored so long and 
patiently to reach this advanced point. Let us suppose 
that one has reached this point and has kept the 
"door" of his heart, and is conscious of the loving 
guidance of his Father-in-heaven. The great danger 
at this stage makes a careful study of the philosophy 
and laws of Being essential. The Voice of The 
Silence has to penetrate into, triumph over prejudice 
— the result of false education — and act through a 
physical brain. Since a physical brain can only regis- 
ter that which vibrates in harmony with its capacity, 
and since through all the years of its life it has been 
trained to vibrate only to physical stimuli, it must be 
gradually regenerated or, being the medium through 
which the message must pass to reach the brain con- 
sciousness of the personality, all that is passed through 
it will necessarily be colored by something of its per- 
sonal characteristics and prejudices. In other words, 
a message received from the Higher Self or from a 
Master of Wisdom can be interpreted only in the 



1 Narcotics, Alcohol and Psychism. 



The Cycle of Necessity 289 

terms afforded by the knowledge, training and capac- 
ity of the physical brain of the personality. Thus, 
without special training, misunderstanding and mis- 
application of the message is more than probable. 
Man]" psychics blunder and subject themselves to 
ridicule and suffering by blindly accepting as literal 
the interpretation made by their untrained brains of 
messages which they know come from a true source. 
If this interpretation proves misleading, they are made 
miserable and perhaps turn away from the guiding 
Voice which is trying so hard to help them. In such 
cases the following rules should be strictly adhered to : 

First, by spiritual aspiration (prayer, uttered or 
unuttered), meditation and above all by love for all 
mankind as shown in the daily life, raise the vibra- 
tions of all the particles composing the brain-centers. 

Second, by a careful study of proper books, and 
by a close observation of Nature, strive to familiarize 
the physical brain with the laws governing indepen- 
dent psychic and spiritual communication. 

Third, carefully write out any message received, 
but do not talk about it to others. Then, before show- 
ing it to anyone, go over it again and again, bringing 
to bear all your powers of logic and common-sense 
to get its most probable application to your own life ; 
for all messages from a proper source are in accord 
with the law of absolute justice. No true Master 
ever tells a pupil to do anything that will in any way 
infringe upon the rights of another. Messages that 
cannot stand the test of love, compassion and justice 
are either mistakes of understanding or deliberate at- 
tempts to mislead; for it must be remembered that 
there are masters of darkness ever watching and 
waiting to take advantage of those whose inner fac- 
ulties are unfolding. Such perverted entities, under- 



290 The Voice of his 

standing the laws of communication, are able to reach 
the student at an earlier period of his development 
than are the Masters of Light, because their vibrations 
are more nearly akin to the earth-plane. For instance, 
the Teachers and Masters of the Great White Lodge 
can communicate with a pupil only over waves of self- 
less love, high aspiration, compassion, purity and 
humility, while those of "the left hand path" can use 
vibrations of ambition, self-seeking, pride and vanity. 
But their messages, while apparently lofty and pure, 
especially at first, have always the germ of some great 
personal power or reward to be gained by the pupil. 
Subtle flattery is always a feature of their instruction, 
while those from the White Lodge carefully point 
out the pupil's faults and tell him how to conquer 
them. The story of Dr. Faustus is a materialized 
dramatization of the method used by such masters of 
evil. 

Until the pupil has cleansed his heart of all 
self-seeking he is open to attacks from the first 
mentioned source. You are never safe if the Devil — 
the power of all that works against God or good — 
can find a single vibration of ambition or selfishness 
over which he can enter. As the Higher Self can 
communicate only over vibrations akin to Himself, 
so the Devil can tempt, but can lead astray and 
deceive only over vibrations similar to his own. 
Hence to protect yourself, send out vibrations of self- 
less love and compassion to all humanity. 

Each Soul has an evil genius created by it during 
its long pilgrimage through matter. This is fully rec- 
ognized and plainly taught in the temptations of the 
man Jesus. For ere He could gain mastery and 
enter on His earthly ministry, He was led by the 
Spirit into the Wilderness to be tempted. Every 



The Cycle of Necessity 291 

neophyte is led by the Spirit — the Higher Self — into 
a mental wilderness where, alone in the dreary wastes 
of physical experience, he is tempted by the devil of 
his own creation. The fasting for forty days is that 
period during which he must abstain from his old 
thoughts and habits, must cease to seek for outward 
help and learn to seek within ; must turn to his Father- 
in-heaven, listen to the voice of his Higher Self and 
refuse longer to be guided by physical vibrations. 
It is a period during which the neophyte is left with- 
out spiritual food and hence must fast; when it seems 
that no help can reach him. Only after this prolonged 
fast in the mental wilderness does the Devil come to 
tempt him. In the parable of the Prodigal Son this 
is the period of his homeward journey, when he has 
refused to eat the husks and has not yet reached his 
Father's house. It is always here that the Devil 
meets each Soul and tempts. In other words, long 
ere he has really found that perfect vibration of love 
through which alone he can hear his Higher Self 
speak, the evil genius, or those akin to him — the mas- 
ters of the shadow — can speak and tempt over vibra- 
tions of selfishness. This selfishness and ambition 
often require a long time to be transmuted into love 
for others, for they have a way of hiding behind all 
sorts of sophistries. 

Up to this point the pupil has had to contend with 
but petty temptations and appetites, but now, having 
consciously taken an advanced step, through prayer 
and fasting he has deliberately entered the Wilder- 
ness to be tempted. The first temptation coming 
from the side of evil is generally that of Power. 
"Command that these stones be made bread." The 
Devil says : "Command and demand all that you 
need. You are not sick or hungry. You are The 



292 The Voice of his 

Christ, therefore command that the earth (which 
karmic law has bereft of Soul-nourishment and 
spiritual satisfaction) shall be turned into bread to 
satisfy your physical wants," even though the very 
eating- thereof binds you tighter to the wheel of 
physical existence. The second temptation comes 
in the form of self-righteousness. The Devil takes 
the hungry Soul up into a high place, upon the very 
pinnacle of the Temple (the body), and there show- 
eth how the Soul has conquered the flesh, growing 
holier than others by the control of the lower appe- 
tites, how it has reached the gates of the Holy City 
and has become a guide and example for many less 
holy and less pure followers. Then the Devil de- 
clares : "Thou, if thou be the Son of God (or if 
thou be The Christ as you have affirmed), cast 
thyself down; for you can do what a lesser Soul 
could not do without sin. That which would be sin 
in one not placed upon so high a pinnacle of the 
Temple within the Holy City is for you but a cer- 
tain license earned because of your holiness. 'He 
shall give his angels charge concerning thee lest at 
any time thou shalt dash thy foot against a stone.' 
Therefore you can do that which would be sin in 
others." 

The third temptation is one of Ambition. This 
only comes to the Soul who has reached the 
mountains of spiritual understanding. The neo- 
phyte has painfully climbed the mountain, has 
entered the Silence, has heard the Voice and seen 
with his spiritual eyes. He has gained certain 
psychic powers, and lo ! all the kingdoms of the 
world and the glory thereof are spread before his 
sight. His evil genius points out that by his awak- 
ened psychic powers he can gain the whole world ; 



The Cycle of Necessity 293 

that men will bow down to him and give him fame 
and glory because he is a little in advance of the 
average ; that he can charge large sums for inter- 
views, psychic readings, etc.; can be feted and hon- 
ored and listened to by the multitude ; can be her- 
alded from place to place, be interviewed by the 
newspapers and receive much public acclaim. All 
of which is a very real and terrible temptation, and 
one which only those who have actually stood upon 
the "exceeding high mountain" and in their Soul- 
vision have actually seen the kingdoms of the 
world at their feet, who have heard the tempter 
say: "All these things will I give thee if thou wilt 
fall down and worship me," can understand or 
appreciate. For this temptation cannot come until 
the neophyte has approached the mountain's top. 

An understanding of these temptations should 
make each judge leniently the shortcomings and 
failures of those who have stood upon the heights, 
but who have fallen down to worship either the 
Beast, the Dragon or the Anti-Christ. Let every 
one cultivate in his own garden the fruits of the 
Spirit, namely, love, joy, peace, gentleness, good- 
ness, faith, meekness and temperance. Every time 
you stop to censure or condemn another an enemy 
(your evil genius) comes while you sleep and sows 
vile weeds in the garden of your Soul ; weeds which 
will grow apace and which must be rooted up ere the 
fruits of the Spirit can be garnered. Every time 
you indulge in thoughts of evil you are filling your 
garden with all sorts of predatory creatures, all of 
which must be driven out ere you can become one 
with your Father and sit down at His table to eat 
of the fruits of the Spirit. 



294 The Voice of his 

The cultivation of the fruits of the Spirit will 
leave you no time to see the shortcomings of others. 
To eat of these fruits will be to sit down at your 
Father's table and sup with Him. "And they shall 
see His face, and His name shall be in their fore- 
heads." 



CHAPTER XXII. 

THE PATH. 

"Thou wilt show me the path of life." — Psalms, 
XVI, 11. 

"Now for the fourth prepare, the portal of 
temptations which do ensnare the inner man." . . 
"Man is a crystal ray ; a beam of light immac- 
ulate within, a form of clay material upon the 
lower surface. That beam is thy life-guide and 
thy true Self, the Watcher and the silent Thinker, 
the victim of thy lower Self." — The Voice of the 
Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment III. 

Every student who has earnestly sought associa- 
tion with this Order has done so because of an inner 
urge, which, whether verbally expressed or not, 
manifests as a determination to set out in earnest 
upon the Path of Discipleship which leads to the 
goal of final liberation. Yet few there be who are 
aware of the many snares and delusions and the 
many requirements necessary to attain that great 
end. Many think this Path but a figure of speech, 
and that all that is necessary is to live an average life, 
to have good intentions, to be honest whenever cir- 
cumstances permit, to be true whenever it seems to 
pay, saying with a shrug of the shoulders "No one 
is perfect and I am doing the best I can under the 
circumstances." Such persons have not only not 
entered the Path but have no conception of what 
the Path is. 

How many, many there are who earnestly and 
sincerely believe they have entered the Path, yet 
who after years of earth-life, years of striving and 



296 The Voice of his 

study and meditation, find themselves apparently 
no further advanced than when they set out. Hence, 
many become discouraged and turn back, saying it is 
a hopeless task, or that only after many lives — some 
say at least seven more — they may begin to attain. 
But the truth is that unless you begin to attain 
today, this present moment, you have not entered 
the Path ; for this Path is made up of regular steps, 
each one a definite attainment. These attainments 
are not mystical dreams of a far-away perfection 
to be attained in the dim future, but something that 
belongs to your every-day life. The first step in Mas- 
tery must be taken now, in a definite practical way ; for 
until this is done the greater steps will forever remain 
untaken. 

The Path is the Path of Renunciation, yet it is 
also a Path of glorious achievement. Upon it you 
will find many things to comfort you during the 
long nights of darkness and the days of combat, 
many resting-places, many joys. The renunciation 
does not mean the renunciation of all human sym- 
pathy, all natural human traits ; for you must be 
"all things unto all men," and this you cannot be 
if you become what the world calls a "crank." The 
renunciation must be the renunciation of the domin- 
ion of the lower self and the disciplining and train- 
ing of its desires and appetites ; the self you have 
built up out of false conceptions of the events 
through which you have gained the experience 
which entitles you to enter upon this definite step. 
Those who have chosen this step are like soldiers 
who have donned their armor and are waiting to go 
forth to victory. 

The goal is reached through definite attainments, 
spoken of as Gates opening into new stages of the 



The Path 297 

journey. These Gates are definite attainments here 
and now in this present life. Each step means a 
struggle, a literal shaping of every act and thought 
toward a definite end which is fully outlined in the 
mind and made the objective point of the life. The 
first Gate to be passed is the attainment of Charity, 
and Tolerance for all, a realization of Divine Love 
and an earnest desire to become one with The 
Christ-force which is manifesting in your fellow 
man. This is the first Gate to be entered because 
intolerance is a bar to further progress. Hence 
while there is the least intolerance in your heart 
this barred Gate will shut off even a vista of the Path. 
To conquer intolerance realize Divine Love as a 
white light which can only manifest on earth 
through its many prismatic colors, and that each 
color, if true and undefiled, has its place in the 
heart of the pure white light, for the white light 
could not be complete if one color ray was missing. 
The color rays symbolize the seven great types or 
classes of humanity with their various idiosyn- 
cracies. To attain true tolerance realize that your 
brothers and sisters, with all their differences of 
opinion and various ways of looking at divine 
Truth, are nevertheless necessary parts of the 
Grand Plan, and that without them you would lack. 
Only a realization of the oneness of all and their 
necessity for the completion of the whole can bring 
true tolerance. You may talk of loving your brother 
as yourself, but not until you have at least a mental 
grasp of the truth that your brother is necessary 
to your own growth, can you really manifest it. 
As long as you look upon yourself as separate and 
aloof from your brother this great bar of intoler- 
ance will remain across the entrance to the Path. . 



298 The Voice of Isis 

In the above we have emphasized the construc- 
tive idea of tolerance. For many think tolerance 
means so vague and indefinite an idea of what you 
yourself believe that you are willing to follow the 
teaching of every phase of Truth anyone may 
expound to you. But such a course is merely con- 
fusing, for you cannot be truly tolerant until you 
are quite sure which avenue of teaching best suits 
your Soul needs. Seek earnestly for the particular 
line of teaching which most appeals to you and 
which proves most helpful to your spiritual growth, 
then, while recognizing the good in all others and 
being tolerant of all divergent views, be well 
grounded in your chosen teaching, so that you can- 
not be misled or carried away by sophistry but will 
remain unmoved as long as the teaching feeds your 
spiritual hunger. Only thus can you take your 
place as a shining beam in your own color ray or 
avenue of teaching. It is like a military evolution; 
the figure is perfect only when each individual is in 
his own place in his own company and is paying 
no attention to the others except to recognize their 
part in the evolution and work harmoniously with 
them. 

Charity is that all-embracing Love which seeks 
for the good in all. It does not mean that you are 
to condone evil, for to do so is to spread it. It means 
that while you are never to condemn a personality 
for his or her failings, you are to stand firm for the 
principles of right, truth, justice and purity when- 
ever you are tempted or see them violated, so that 
there can be no misunderstanding as to the prin- 
ciples you uphold. 

The second Gate consists of the attainment of 
Harmony, both within yourself and also with your 
surroundings, or the power to be so harmonized to 



The Path 299 

Divinity that you pass through the turmoil and 
inharmony of life without permitting them to 
upset you. 

At this Gate you must conquer fear, for this is 
a necessary part of the attainment of harmony, 
for only perfect love casteth out fear. Many pupils 
knock a long time at this Gate and wonder why 
it does not open to them. They desire harmony 
above all else and cry out continually that they 
are sending out nothing but love to their fellow 
men yet receive in return inharmony, unkindness 
and cruelty. If such candidates would look within 
themselves instead of around them for the harmony 
they seek they would find that the great specter Fear 
held them enthralled. They fear a thousand things, 
chiefly that the world does not understand what 
they are striving to manifest, for if it did it could 
not send back so much inharmony. They fear the 
opinions of friends, poverty, sickness, death. In 
fact their fears are too numerous to mention and 
in their hearts, although the beautiful flower of love 
has been planted, yet the many noxious weeds of 
fear have sprung up so thickly that the plant is un- 
able to bloom and send out its perfume to harmon- 
ize the conditions in which it grows. Therefore 
they will knock at this Gate in vain until they have 
vanquished fear or until they have learned to trust 
and believe in the divine overshadowing Love which 
casteth out fear. When this is attained they will 
awaken to find the Gate of Harmony already ajar. 

This specter, Fear, while it seems a giant is in 
reality but a shadow of the night. Let the candidate 
realize the divinity of his Real Self, that it is death- 
less, immortal and cannot be harmed. Let him re- 
peat constantly "I am fearless because my Real Self 



300 The Voice of Isis 

is divine and there is nothing to fear. Divine Love is 
the law of my being - and I can trust in this great 
Law to conquer all conditions. With it I am strong, 
powerful, forceful. Manifesting this love I cannot 
be discouraged, frightened, or turned aside from the 
Path of spiritual attainment." As he permits his 
consciousness to dwell in this thought there will 
grow up in him the strength and power to conquer. 
Then ere he knows it he will find this Gate standing 
wide and the light of its portal flooding his whole 
life with the glory of its Love and Harmony. 

The Third Gate is that of Patience, i. e., having 
earnestly cultivated Divine Love in your heart, and 
Tolerance and Charity for all ; having harmonized 
yourself to The Christ and to your surroundings, 
and having conquered fear, there must ensue a 
longer or shorter period in which you wait for you 
scarce know what. This is beautifully expressed 
by the Psalmist : "My soul waiteth for the Lord 
more than they that watch for the morning." 1 And 
again, the heart cries out: "And now, Lord, what 
wait I for? my hope is in Thee. Deliver me from 
all my transgressions." 2 You are waiting for the 
Divine Law to bring to you the result of your at- 
tainments. This is a very trying period in your 
life, because, feeling that you have attained to Love, 
Harmony, Charity, Tolerance, etc., you cannot un- 
derstand why you must tarry so long at this Third 
Gate. Yet there is a great necessity that it should 
be so, for without the virtues of Patience and Trust, 
and Confidence that whatever comes is best, you 
would be utterly unable to cope with the more 
active trials and temptations that will assail you 
when you reach the Fourth Gate. This waiting 

« Psalms CXXX-6. 
•Psalm* XXXIX. 7-8. 



The Path 301 

develops the Patience which affords the Soul a 
chance to learn the great lesson Keep Silent, also 
how to enter into the Silence and become one with 
it. For you have not mastered Patience until you 
have learned to quiet the mentality, enter the 
Silence and realize the meaning of the text "Be 
still and know that I (the great Law of Love) am 
God." 

When you have consciously sought membership 
in The Order of the 15 you are supposed to have 
passed, in a measure at least, the first three of these 
Gates, and are now knocking at the Fourth; the 
Gate which opens to your consciousness the Path 
itself. You are now ready to obey the voice of your 
Higher Self which is urging upon you a conscious 
and persistent effort toward Mastery, instead of 
drifting aimlessly as heretofore on the sea of life. 
The entrance to this Fourth Gate is a most momen- 
tous event, for it marks the end of the first great 
cycle of your spiritual growth. Since from an oc- 
cult standpoint the 4 contains the potency of the 10 
(1 4-2+34-4=10), anc [ s i nce 4 or the square is the 
most perfect earthly figure, fat this point you must 
square yourself as it were with earthly conditions 
as you find them ; for at this step you face the fourth 
dimension in which all things interpenetrate. At 
this point you must face yourself, for over this Gate 
is written the Pythagorian precept: "Man, know 
thyself." When you strive to obey this precept you 
will become aware that there is at least one great 
iron bar which closes this Gate to you. But 
within yourself you can find the power to lift this 
bar and permit the Gate to swing open. No one 
can recognize and lift this bar but yourself. 



302 The Voice of his 

Until this Fourth Gate is reached, your life has 
been a more or less unconscious growth in Love, 
Charity, Tolerance, Harmony, Fearlessness, and 
Patience, but now you face a serious conscious 
struggle. You must now begin to take account of 
yourself within as well as without. You have been 
able largely to control your actions and your words. 
You now become responsible for your own creations, 
the children of your thoughts, and must "To the 
Silent Thinker be united." This Silent Thinker is 
not that which is known as the Voice of the Silence, 
but that silent undercurrent of thought which is 
continually penetrating your brain, although what 
might be called the active thoughts may, like ripples 
on the surface, make you unaware of what is trans- 
piring in the depths. The instant you begin self- 
analysis you will find there are many deep thoughts 
which come into your mind without your volition 
and seem to think themselves. These are of two 
kinds ; if they are uplifting, grand or beyond the 
power of the physical brain to express, they come 
from the Silent Thinker ; if they are frivolous, con- 
temptible, or vile, they are but the reflection of the 
world's current of thought to which you have united 
yourself and permitted to flow through you, "the 
children of your thoughts, unseen, impalpable, that 
swarm around human-kind." But of whatever 
character they may be, they are the index of the 
self you are to study and to conquer. For to "know 
thyself" means to go down deep into the sources 
of selfhood and decide just what the great motives 
are which are determining your character and 
prompting your actions. These motives can be 
determined by careful study of the impalpable 
thoughts which intrude themselves upon you 



The Path 303 

against your volition. Thoughts are things, and 
man in the aggregate during his evolution has 
thrown off thoughts of all kinds, and these accumu- 
lated thought-forms have become great vortices of 
force into which each Soul is naturally drawn, ac- 
cording to its affinity with the one or the other type. In 
other words, you permit your mind to be so filled 
with the currents of the world-thought surrounding 
you that your brain becomes a fit vehicle for, and 
develops within it definite channels through which 
certain classes of thought-currents naturally flow, 
just as a stream automatically follows a channel 
dug for it ; and the longer it flows in one channel 
the broader and deeper the channel becomes, and the 
more difficult it is to change the stream. It is well 
known that the brain of a thinker differs from that of 
a savage not so much in size and weight as in the num- 
ber and depth of its convolutions, which convolutions 
are developed by the functioning of the centers they 
contain. 

Another means of self-analysis is carefully and 
fearlessly to interpret your dreams and visions. 
For the Silent Thinker is continually guiding and 
warning you by means of such experiences. Dreams 
are of three general classes : first, confused inco- 
herent ideas more or less imperfectly remembered, 
the result of inharmonious physical or mental con- 
ditions which keep the lower mind more or less ac- 
tive yet uncontrolled by the presence of the Ego; 
second, the experiences of the human-mind wander- 
ing uncontrolled in the lower astral world; third, 
the symbolic dreams and visions, coherent and 
usually clearly remembered, the result of the per- 
sonality doing the best it can, by using the thought 
materials of the waking consciousness, to illustrate 



304 The Voice of Isis 

the spiritual truths or lessons given by its Higher 
Self during the sleep of the body. Hence a careful 
analysis of dreams will show what general stage of 
development the candidate has reached and what 
general problems he must face and conquer. You 
do not have to experience the two lower classes of 
dreams if you train your brain mind to refuse to 
accept such experiences. When this- training is 
accomplished you will dream only when your 
Higher Self desires to give you a lesson or a warn- 
ing. 

It is with these inner thought-currents that the 
candidate who knocks at the Fourth Gate must de- 
terminately grapple ; first recognize, and then con- 
trol. No thought-currents coming from your Higher 
Self or from the Masters of Wisdom can flow into 
your consciousness until, by determined conscious 
effort, you have swept away all trifling thoughts and 
have prepared channels for higher thoughts. At 
this step you become responsible for the effect of 
every outside influence that impinges upon your 
consciousness. You become responsible not only 
for all the emanations which you send out to inter- 
penetrate all space and impinge upon every other 
human being but also responsible for every thought 
you permit to enter your consciousness from any 
source. 

While you cannot expect to conquer all at once 
and absolutely shut out every undesirable thought, 
still you can refuse to dwell upon a thought 
and can determinately think some constructive 
thought which will ultimately create a channel 
through which like thoughts will naturally flow. 
In other words, you must be the Chooser, the 
Wilier, the Master of your thoughts. And you will 



The Path 305 

remain before this Gate until you carve out new 
channels through which the currents of thought 
from the Silent Thinker can flow into your con- 
sciousness. Hence, Patience is the supreme quality 
to be cultivated at this Gate. 

There are many barriers which hold you back at 
this point — until you can recognize that there is 
nothing in all the universe that is important enough 
to stop your onward march; that the Silent Thinker 
is your True Self, one with Divinity. When these 
barriers are reached, so many, many cry out: 
"What shall I do? How shall I conquer? Give me 
some definite step to take that I may know I have 
really entered the Path." Why this questioning? 
When through all the ages "Wisdom crieth with- 
out ; she uttereth her voice in the streets ; she crieth 
in the chief place of the concourse, in the openings 
of the gates." x 

The first step is plainly set forth in The Voice of 
The Silence: 2 "Before the Soul can comprehend and 
may remember, she must unto the Silent Speaker 
be united, just as the form to which the clay is 
modeled is first united with the potter's mind." 
Here you find the first step, the great step, pointed 
out. Indeed, this step is the beginning and the end, 
for only as you strive for and accomplish this feat 
can you truly enter the Fourth Gate and win final 
victory. How can you get from this injunction the 
help your heart longs for? the definite step that shall 
make you something different, something greater, 
better, higher; that shall give you power? While 
we do not countenance attempts to cultivate abnor- 
mal powers, we are told again and again that if you 
are a child of the Father and are doing the works of 

1 Proverbs i, 20-21 
* Page 2. 



306 The Voice of his 

the Father, then you will have the powers of the 
Father abiding in you. 

How is this to be accomplished? Just as clay is 
united to the potter's mind. When a potter starts 
to make a wonderful vase — a marvel of beauty, a 
poem of symbology, a lesson for all who look — he 
does not copy something another mind has brought 
forth. Such a production would be spurious. The 
true potter, the artist, is original. Long before one 
stroke is made, even before the clay is moistened, 
his mind has created every detail of the vase. This 
is an illustration of how you must go to work. 
Unite yourself with the mind of the Great Potter, 
the Great Over-Soul, the Thinker, Him of whom 
you desire to become an expression, for to you He 
must first become the Silent Thinker ere He be- 
comes the Speaker. Before you can remodel your 
life you must catch a glimpse of the Divine Plan 
in the mind of the Silent Thinker. Tolerate no de- 
fect, see a vision of the perfection you desire to 
reach and work consciously in harmony with it. 
This cannot be accomplished until you have realized 
the possibility of closing the door of your mind to 
all undesirable thoughts. To do this, practice mak- 
ing your mind a blank and shutting out all thought 
and when this has been accomplished in a measure 
you will be ready to open the door to such thoughts 
as you desire. 

As long as thoughts of discouragement, impa- 
tience, self-depreciation, or other similar thoughts 
can fill your mind against your will to the exclusion 
of the thoughts you have chosen, you have not 
united yourself to the Silent Thinker and cannot 
hear the voice of the Silent Speaker. Therefore, 
while the task is arduous it is not hopeless. As we 
said in the beginning, there are many joys along 



The Path 307 

the Path, chief of which is the consciousness of 
your Divine Guidance and the realization that you 
are but following in the steps of every Great Soul 
who has attained Mastery. And the very fact of 
determinately facing this Fourth Gate brings you 
into a thought-current, which has been both 
created and strengthened by the many pilgrims 
who have passed this way, so that it may be said 
that they have left behind landmarks and guide- 
posts for your direction. There is scarcely a tempta- 
tion that can assail you that many of the loving 
Elder Brothers have not passed through and con- 
quered, hence They are stretching out guiding 
hands to help you. The very force with which They 
conquered remains as a sacred aura around this 
Gate; in fact, the thoughts They have left behind 
might be compared to a golden thread reaching all 
the way. And as long as you hold to this thread 
you cannot lose your way. 

"Ere thou canst near that goal, before thine hand 
is lifted to upraise the fourth gate's latch, thou must 
have mastered all the mental changes in thy Self, 
and slain the army of the thought sensations that, 
subtle and insidious, creep unasked within the 

Soul's bright shrine Strive with thy 

thoughts unclean before they overpower thee. Use 
them as they will use thee, for if thou sparest them 
and they take root and grow, know well these 

thoughts will overpower and kill thee 

O fearless Aspirant, look deep within the well of 
thine own heart, and answer. Knowest thou of 
Self the. powers, O thou perceiver of external shad- 
ows? For, on Path fourth, the lightest 

breeze of passion or desire will stir the steady light 
upon the pure white walls of Soul." x 

1 The Voice of The Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment I. 
(Carefully re-study the chapter on Purity.) 



CHAPTER XXIII. 
earth's finer forces. 

"Earth my mother bid me learn 
Truth in darkness to discern; 
Like thy forces, silently, 
Work in true humility." 
— Hymns of The Order of the 15. 

In the Orient the foot is held in high esteem 
for its symbology — spiritual understanding — as well 
as for its beauty and symmetry. And frequent 
ceremonial washings are enjoined both by religion 
and hospitality. Shoes are worn only for protec- 
tion, it being a breach of etiquette to enter the 
presence of a high dignitary with the feet covered. 
In places of worship the shoes are left at the door, 
the devotee entering the holy place barefooted. 
Moreover, oriental temples are seldom found with 
any floor but Mother Earth. The pious Moslem 
sprinkles fresh earth in his shoes so that when com- 
pelled to wear them he will still have his feet upon 
the earth; for he knows that it is through the soles 
of the feet that the nourishing magnetism of Mother 
Earth enters the body to give life and health to her 
children. 

The Yogies of the East go barefooted in com- 
pliance with this law, and their habit of sitting 
upon a mat of rushes spread upon the bare ground 
is to gain the valued aid of the earth-forces in their 
spiritual development. The magnetic forces that 
enter at the feet pass out at the head, therefore the 
yogi covers his head with a silk turban. Silk, being 
a non-conductor, prevents the escape of the earth- 



Earth's Finer Forces 309 

forces and stores them up in his body to be utilized 
for his further development. To wear silk upon 
the feet insulates the body from the earth-forces 
and impedes the flow of the currents of your per- 
sonal magnetism back to the earth in perfect equi- 
librium. As the magnetism is the force upon which 
obsessing or controlling entities feed, persons re- 
ceiving communications from the astral-plane are 
frequently advised by their controls to wear silk 
upon the feet, thus interfering with the normal 
exchange of forces and storing up the personal 
magnetism for the use of the controlling entity. 
Naturally such practices belong to the destructive 
method of psychic communication and hence are 
to be avoided. 

To obtain power and enter into close touch with x 
Nature it is desirable at certain times to put off 
your shoes, and, after rubbing the feet with a little 
vegetable oil, walk barefooted while the dew is still 
upon^ the grass. While helpful and advisable this 
practice is by no means the most important factor, 
for true spiritual development is the result of mani- 
festing The Christ-force in the heart, and all ex- 
ternal forces are but secondary. Without the spir- 
itual growth no amount of magnetic forces can pro- 
duce spirituality. Walking barefoot in the dew 
is practiced in many of the occult schools of the 
East as well as by the Barefoot Friars of the 
Christian era. 

Very early in the morning the earth is giving 
forth its magnetism most abundantly. The forces 
with^ which the sun has rilled the earth during the 
previous day have germinated in the darkness (as 
all life must), and in the morning are breathed out 
by Mother Earth in sufficient quantity to sustain 



310 The Voice of I sis 

her children through the day. While the sun 
rules the day, and by its creative power causes all 
life to germinate, still it is only the masculine force 
— the Father — and alone it cannot create; but when 
it is joined with the air, its expression, 1 and com- 
mingled with water — the feminine force — deep 
within the bosom of the earth a wonderful alchemi- 
cal change, called creation, takes place. It is thus 
that moist earth (the Mother) when fecundated by 
the sun (the Father) expressing himself through air, 
brings forth. When the earth is parched and dry 
the magnetic rays from the sun cannot penetrate 
it but are deflected and dissipated, so that instead 
of fecundating they wither and burn the vegetation. 
It is through Mother Earth that the life-forces 
are incubated and brought forth, not only for Na- 
ture, but for mankind. After the magnetic rays 
from the sun have fecundated the germs of physical 
life they are developed and given forth by the 
breath of the earth. Well has the earth been 
called our Mother, for only through the dual forces 
generated in the earth is life manifested and nour- 
ished. It is not sunshine alone that gives life, but 
it is sunshine absorbed, fecundated and sent forth by 
the earth, assimilated by all vegetation through its 
roots and by all animal life through the soles of its 
feet, that gives the magnetic nourishment of the 
dual forces which perfect life and health. Modern 
medicine has accepted this fact, under the name 
of Kneipp 2 treatment, without knowing its rationale. 
Walking barefooted is now prescribed throughout 

1 The sun force cannot express itself on the earth without air, •'. *., 
fire cannot burn without oxygen. 

J Father Sebastian Kneipp, a Bavarian priest, son of a poor 
weaver. He cured himself and a fellow student of nervous pros- 
tration by a system of nature cure, and later founded a large sani- 
tarium for nature cure at Woerishofen. Walking barefooted is a 
marked feature of the treatment. 



Earth's Finer Forces 311 \ 

Europe and at many sanitariums in this country 
as a part of various nature-cure procedures. 

In the ancient Schools of the Prophets, and among 
the pupils of all the great teachers of the Mysteries, 
great attention was given to the study of Nature. The 
disciples, being separated from the world, were re- 
quired to spend much time in meditation close to 
Mother Earth, always with their feet bare and 
their heads covered. The earth-forces, if allowed 
uninterrupted play through man's body, bring to 
him, just as they do to the plants, the kind of 
magnetic nourishment suited to his requirements, 
in exact accord with his capacity to utilize it, to 
reach perfection on all planes. As well might we 
expect a rose to grow to perfection and bloom with 
its roots suspended above the earth as for man to 
develop without contact with the earth. For not 
only does he draw health for his physical body 
from the earth, but also a power which aids in un- 
folding his inner faculties. We might give the rose 
sunlight, air and water, and might tend it with all 
care, but unless Mother Earth was permitted to 
first imbibe the forces of the sun, air and rain and 
by her wonderful alchemical power transmute them 
into life-force, the rose could not grow. In a sim- 
ilar manner a mother eats and drinks and breathes, 
and by transmuting all the constituents of nour- 
ishment, brings forth their essence in the sustain- 
ing life-force in the milk with which she feeds 
her babe. 

The prophet Isaiah says, "How beautiful upon 
the mountain are the feet of him that bringeth 
good tidings, that publisheth peace." 1 The earth 
breathes, the mountains acting as her lungs. They 
are u pheaved by her efforts to throw off in greater 

HTaith, LII, 7. 



312 The Voice of his 

abundance the magnetic life-force. While in the 
human body impurities are breathed out and fresh 
air is breathed in, just the opposite takes place in 
the case of the earth entity; impurities sink into 
the earth and are indrawn and purified and are 
then breathed out as pure, magnetic currents of 
life-force. Hence upon a mountain the currents 
would be felt most strongly and a disciple dwelling 
there, if it all developed, would thus be enabled to 
carry the good tidings and publish peace with 
greater power. It is not mere elevation that per- 
mits this action but the porosity and character of the 
rock formations. 

Each portion of the earth's surface gives out its 
particular and characteristic force which influences 
not only the climate and vegetation but also the 
mentality and nervous system of its inhabitants. 
In a general way the force thrown out by moun- 
tains is the masculine or Father-force, correspond- 
ing to Will. It is a hardening force which is 
exhilarating yet which makes for ruggedness and 
stability and gives the power to endure. For in- 
stance, the Rocky Mountains may be considered 
the backbone of this continent. They form a great 
wall or barrier which is continually being strength- 
ened so that when the cyclic cataclysms occur — as 
they must not only at the end of the Root Race 
(Fifth), but also in a minor degree at the end of 
its fifth sub-race — the Rockies will indeed be a back- 
bone that shall preserve that portion of the con- 
tinent which is destined to survive. Hence, while 
excellent for hardy pioneer types, high, barren and 
rugged mountains send out a force which is very 
hard for a spiritually advanced or sensitive person 
to withstand or correlate with. Nevertheless from 



Earth's Finer Forces 313 

them should be gained the power to endure, the 
power of stability and perseverance. Only those 
advanced Souls who have mastered or correlated 
with these forces or persons whose centers are not 
developed to respond to them, can endure a lengthy 
sojourn in high mountains. 

On the other hand the characteristic of the sea- 
coast, especially in southern or tropical countries, 
is the Mother-force, the power to bring forth, cor- 
responding to Love. This force is typified by gen- 
tle moist breezes, fresh warm air and golden sun- 
shine. The characteristic of southern regions near 
the sea coast is growth. And just as they produce pro- 
lific vegetation, so will they tend to bring forth in the 
spiritual life. The dangers to be encountered and the 
trials to be met will also be characteristic of these re- 
gions. Instead of the over-exhilaration of the moun- 
tain regions there will be a tendency to lassitude and 
languor and to put forth little effort toward the 
spiritual life. Instead of the depression of rocks 
and barrenness there will be the depressing influ- 
ence of fogs, marshes and excessive rainfall. The 
daily trials will be comparable to the many stinging 
insects, the prickly cactus and other thorny forms 
of vegetation. Moreover, the weeds, i. e., pseudo 
forms of occult or spiritual growth, will grow apace 
and tend to choke out the true seed. 

In the air from the mountains the Father-force 
predominates, while the air that sweeps across the 
sea gathers up the Mother-force which has been 
purified by the action of the salt. Hence, from an 
occult standpoint, the most favorable outward con- 
ditions for spiritual growth should be found in re- 
gions where the breath of the mountains meets 
that of the sea, and far enough South to avoid using 



314 The Voice of I sis 

up a large part of your life-forces overcoming the 
rigors of the climate. 

You may thus find an explanation of many of 
your trials in the character of the region you in- 
habit, for the inhabitants of a region are subject 
to the earth's Karma in that region. But remember 
that wherever you find yourself you are there be- 
cause you need the lessons of just those conditions. 
And until you have mastered them and the Law in 
a natural way takes you elsewhere, it is useless 
to try to escape them ; for if you run away they 
will meet you in other and perhaps more trying 
forms until conquered. Once understand what each 
factor in your environment corresponds to sym- 
bolically in your personal life and you have the key 
to its mastery. Just as Nature conquers and over- 
comes all difficulties arising from the environment 
by adapting herself to them, so must you. Each 
region has special advantages which compensate 
in a measure for its drawbacks. The luxuriance of 
growth which is denied to a rugged climate is 
compensated for by the greater fragrance of its 
flowers, the superior flavor of its fruits and the 
greater energy of its inhabitants. So if your spirit- 
ual growth seems hampered or dwarfed by an un- 
congenial environment, remember that you must com- 
pensate for this lack by giving forth greater perfume. 

If your conditions permit the development of 
many higher faculties and luxuriant spiritual 
growth, do not forget to send forth the subtile per- 
fume of love and attractiveness for which no amount 
of mere growth, mere knowledge, mere intellectual 
attainments can ever compensate. The perfume will 
arise from your rose of life in proportion as you 
conquer the factors in your life which hold you back. 



Earth's Finer Forces 315 

When the Angel of the Lord spake to Moses out 
of the burning bush he said unto him, "Put off thy 
shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou 
standeth is holy ground." x While this might have 
a literal meaning in connection with the magnetic 
forces of that particular spot, it has an inner sig- 
nificance applicable to all disciples who can hear 
the Angel of the Lord. It refers to an initiation. 
The "bush" is the same thing often spoken of as 
a Tree, the Tree of Life, the Tree of Knowledge 
of Good and Evil, etc. The tree is the spinal cord, 
whose sap is the Kundalini force. It is the Tree of 
Life and Death, until, by conscious power, this 
force is lifted up and made to function in the cen- 
tral canal of the spinal cord. Then it becomes the 
Tree of Life in the midst of the Garden. To at- 
tempt to force the development of this power or to 
strive to awaken it without a personal teacher who 
has mastered it, is to invite undreamed of disasters 
on all planes and in all bodies. It should develop 
only as the result of natural growth. The whole 
story is most simple if looked at as an allegory 
meant to symbolize an important initiation. 

We read that "Moses kept the flock," and lead 
them into the desert, i. e., he kept the flocks of 
thoughts, inherited tendencies, passions and desires, 
the portion of goods delivered to him by his Higher 
Self to keep and control. "And he led the flock 
to the backside of the desert and came to the 
mountain of God." As all students, who have truly 
undertaken to lead and guide the flocks belonging 
to their lower personality, can verify, the first effect 
of the attempt at control is to turn life into a lone- 
some desert. How often do we hear the student 

1 Exodus III, 1-5. 



316 The Voice of I sis 

complain that this period of sadness and depression 
is as though he were forsaken and left alone in a 
desert! Just as the shepherd, alone in the desert, 
must fight off wild beasts, shield his flock from the 
elements, find pasturage for them and keep them 
from straying, so the neophyte must fight the lonely 
battle with his lower personality in this desert of 
depression that seems to have enwrapped him. But 
when he reaches the darkest point — the backside of 
the desert — he finds the Mountain of God. He can 
only reach this Mount by fearlessly entering the 
desert and conquering its terrors. Here "The 
Angel of the Lord 1 appeared unto him in a flame of 
fire out of the midst of a bush ; and he looked, and, 
behold, the bush burned with fire and the bush 
was not consumed." He had met with a realization 
of the fire of Divine Love; the sun of Righteousness 
had illumined his heart; he had arisen and met the 
Lord. This point is reached when the pupil is able 
to hear the voice of the Master. When the Kunda- 
lini force has passed up through the spine and 
touched the pineal gland 2 — opened the third eye — 
the disciple is able to see "the glory of the Lord" 
surrounding him. 

This is a physical effect which always accom- 
panies spiritual illumination and is comparable to a 
fire which burns without consuming. But while 
this is a physical effect accompanying illumination, 
remember it is not the cause of illumination, 
merely an effect. And out of the midst of the 
bush he will hear the voice of his Lord. But first 
comes the summons "put off thy shoes from off thy 
feet."' As the feet symbolize spiritual understand- 

1 The Angel of the Resurrection. 

* An organ in the brain whose function is unknown to physical id- 
ence. It is the organ of spiritual sight. 



Earth's Finer Forces 317 

ing, so the shoes symbolize a conception of Truth 
which has been moulded and adapted to the under- 
standing. Before the student can receive spiritual 
illumination all old conceptions or coverings to his 
understanding must be put off or laid aside that 
the understanding may receive the Light direct. It 
is not that the old conceptions must be despised, 
for we do not despise our shoes when we take them 
off, but that the understanding must be absolutely 
unhampered before spiritual illumination can come. 

The Law back of this manifests equally in the outer 
world. The pioneer in any plane of activity must 
turn aside from the path marked out by the dictum 
of others. No doctor, scientist, or explorer ever 
makes a great discovery until he metaphorically 
puts off his shoes or drops the limitations imposed 
by authority and strikes out into the unknown, un- 
trammeled and free, even though he reach his start- 
ing point over a beaten pathway. When the disciple 
does this he has reached a point where he can 
receive definite instructions from the Master, and 
the operation of natural forces and how to control 
them and correlate with them in accord with the 
divine Law of Harmony, is one of the first lessons 
given. 

Again we read, "He brought me up also out of 
an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet 
upon a rock, and established my goings." 1 Miry 
clay being non-porous, is the least magnetic, and 
precludes the escape of the life-force from the earth, 
while rocks, high hills and mountains are distinctly 
advantageous. 

Science is beginning to discover that it is the 
earth itself that brings forth rather than the rain, 
or ev en the sun. They have discovered that far 

ipJaims, XL, 2. 



318 The Voice of I sis 

better crops can be raised when the top soil is kept 
loose and pervious to the magnetic forces. In reach- 
ing these results, however, it has not fully under- 
stood the cause. The wonderful results secured in 
the arid land of the West without irrigation, by the 
process called "dry farming," x is only proof that 
Mother Earth holds within her bosom all the nour- 
ishment needed to bring forth to perfection, if she 
is given conditions under which she can absorb the 
Father-force and transmute it within her womb. In 
the process of dry farming the ground is ploughed 
deeply, the subsoil packed firmly and the surface 
pulverized, and kept loose and porous by frequent 
harrowing. Phenomenal crops have been raised 
where the rainfall was slight, and on ground con- 
sidered for generations as arid and forever unpro- 
ductive, owing to the impossibility of irrigation. 

Science, while obtaining results, has only partially 
solved the problem. It is not alone because this 
method conserves the little rain that falls, for that 
of itself would be inadequate to produce the won- 
derful crops obtained. It is because the loose, porous 
soil permits the absorption and out-breathing of the 
forces to go on uninterruptedly, and the vital forces 
from the sun, after being fecundated, can be sent 
forth freely and in abundance. Those who have 
never investigated this new process of farming will 
marvel at the result, for it is real magic, the magic 
of Mother Earth. It is the alchemy of the mother 
transmuting the sand of the desert into gold— • 
golden grain for her children's sustenance. 

It is early in the morning, just before sunrise, that 
the magnetic forces are flowing most strongly up- 
ward. This upward flow gradually decreases until 

1 See U. S. Experiment Station Bulletins on "Dry Land Farming.* 
Cambell's "Soil Culture Manual," H. W. Cambell, Lincoln, Neb. 



Earth's Finer Forces 319 

at high, noon the forces are equalized and then begin 
to be indrawn again ; the Mother is drinking in the 
power of her Lord, the Sun. Precisely the same 
action is taking place at noon between the earth and 
the sun, as takes place at the time of union between 
man and woman. The Sun (masculine) is giving, 
pouring out, and the earth (feminine) is receiving 
and drawing into her womb the force that shall 
fecundate and bring forth physical life. The very 
first step in practical occultism is acquiring a knowl- 
edge of how Mother Earth works her miracles, and 
by what means the Divine Creative Force of the 
Father combines with and fructifies the force of the 
Mother, for "As above, so below." 

Since at noon all the forces of Nature and man 
are focused on the earth-plane it is wisest to have 
the principal meal of the day at noon, for then the 
physical forces can best transmute the food with the 
least dram upon or disturbance of the higher forces. 
From the above it is plain that the student should 
contact the earth whenever possible. But, alas, this 
is not always feasible in crowded cities; for the 
pavements, in varying degrees according to their 
formation, are obstacles to the passage of the earth- 
forces. Also the leakage from gas mains, electric 
conduits, sewers, etc., are all deterrents. The habits' 
of civilization which demand that the feet, created 
to be the natural absorber and transmitter of these 
forces, shall be encased in tight impervious shoes 
also prevents contact with these forces. Shoes are a 
necessity in cities, yet everyone should find time to 
stand barefooted on the earth for a few moments early 
in the morning. 1 

J This is not a requirement of the Order, but is recommended More 
barm than good will result, however, if practiced only intermittently 
n account of the hability to take cold. Porous mcccasin, may be worn 
md even shoes if of porous material. worn. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

THE LIGHT. 

"And the earth was without form, and void; 
and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And 
the Spirit of God moved upon the. face of the 
waters. And God said, Let there be light : and 
there was light." — Genesis I., 2-3. 

"Fix thy Soul's gaze upon the star whose ray 
thou art, the flaming star that shines within the 
lightless depths of ever-being, the boundless fields 
of the unknown." — The Voice of the Silence, 
Blavatsky, Fragment II. 

In The Voice of the Silence we read of four periods, 
called "modes of Truth," x through which the Candi- 
date for discipleship must pass ere his feet can be truly 
planted upon the Path. Until he awakens to the desira- 
bility of the spiritual life and has heard the Voice of 
the Divine in his heart, the candidate is passing through 
the first period, called in the Hindu Ku or the assem- 
bling of misery, or walking in darkness. When his 
gaze is turned toward the Star of Initiation he calls 
down upon himself more rapidly his past Karma. 
This period is called Tu or the assembling of tempta- 
tions. In the third period he meets and conquers all 
temptations and wipes out all old karmic debts, which 
period is called Mu, the destruction of temptations. 
And only in the fourth period, called Tau, does he 
consciously enter upon the Path. 

Just as the candidate requires four periods of crea- 
tion through which he must pass ere he can create for 
himself a new life and a new world (his Path), so in 

1 "Ku, suffering or misery; Tu, the assembling of temptations; Mv, 
their destruction; and Tau, the Path," p. 21. 



The Light 321 

the creation of a planet there are four days or periods 
in which there is a completion of mere earth condi- 
tions (the Path of the planet) preparatory to the real 
purpose of evolution, which is to prepare a field (the 
Path) for the continued evolution of mankind. 

The first .creation is that of light, symbolizing the 
light of The Christos which breaks into the darkness 
of man's ignorance and sin and turns his attention to- 
ward a higher life. This light perceived in his heart is 
called the Star of Initiation because the first glimpse of 
its glory initiates him into a new world, and the memory 
of that flash leaves him no peace until he seeks its 
source. This Light shines in the darkness of the un- 
awakened Soul and the darkness comprehendeth it 
not; it moves like the Spirit of God over the face of 
the restless waters of humanity and awakens to life 
that which is latent therein. The darkness is pregnant 
with the potencies of all things, both good and evil, 
which at the breaking forth of the light become 
energized with new life and begin their slow evolution 
toward perfection. As with the earth when God said, 
"Let there be light," so with the candidate. The 
instant he perceives the light of The Christ within, 
every hidden thing within him is energized and awak- 
ened to activity; for only by this fermentation can 
the evil be transmuted and evolve into good. 

In the second period is created a firmament and 
the waters are separated from the waters. In the life 
of the candidate this period is passed in learning to 
separate his higher from his lower nature ; in learning 
to separate the desires (symbolized by water — illusion) 
which drag him down from those which tend toward 
the higher life. By this separation he creates for 
himself a positive ideal toward which to strive 
(heaven) and recognizes the overshadowing of his 



322 The Voice of Isis 

Higher Self (the firmament). The acquired meaning 
of the word firmament is to make firm, the true 
meaning being an expanse or the circle within which 
a definite creation takes place. In the second period 
the candidate creates for himself a definite circle or 
defines the limits of his spiritual aura within which 
must evolve his spiritual body, just as the earth 
evolves within its firmament or the limits of its 
auric zone. 1 

In the third period the dry land, the seas and all 
vegetation producing seed after its kind is created. 
In the candidate this is the period in which he 
brings forth and conquers his lower nature. He 
here gains the power of standing on a firm foun- 
dation (the dry land) and separating from this all 
that is illusory (the sea). He deliberately plants, 
and by the power of the Divine Will, brings forth 
such seeds as he chooses. Only when this is accom- 
plished to a greater or lesser degree can he really 
enter the Path itself. Only when he has grasped 
enough of the philosophy of the workings of the 
Divine Law to give him a reason for the faith that 
is within him, a reason that cannot be shaken by 
doubts or sophistries, can he have a firm foundation 
upon which to stand. 

Each pupil is passing through one of these periods 
of creation, but only when he has reached the fourth 
has he really created the Path. In ancient Temples 
the sacred shrine was approached by seven steps, 
the fourth of which was a broad terrace upon which 
most of the ceremonies took place. Only the few 
initiated priests and priestesses were permitted to 
ascend the higher steps ; for the fourth step symbolized 
the Path and only those who had conquered the 

1 See the meaning of the circle in Chapter XXXIV. 



The Light 323 

steps of approach and had created the Path could 
go higher. Some of you have reached this fourth 
step or period, while most of you are struggling 
upon one of the three lower, still assembling the 
various trials and temptations which must be met 
and conquered ere the Path is entered. 

The trials that come to you are more than mere 
tests. When the gods said, "Let there be light" 
the light began to penetrate into the darkness — 
the cast-off matter of a previous world period, all 
that had not been transmuted into good. This is 
the outer darkness into which the unprofitable 
servant is cast, 1 which simply means that all the 
matter which should be the servant of its Lord 
(The Christ), but which fails to respond during 
one period of manifestation, must pass through 
a period of outer darkness or lie in the grave until 
the resurrection or the dawn of the next Manvan- 
tara. 2 In many respects the darkness might be 
compared to a compost heap into which all refuse, 
effete and unusable matter is cast, there to ferment 
in darkness until the next springtime when it can 
be spread upon the earth and its life-force, trans- 
muted by the powers of the elements, can be 
utilized to bring forth flowers, fruits and grains 
for the service and sustenance of man. This accu- 
mulated mass is darkness because it is composed 
of dead matter, incapable of reflecting light. In 
the same way the candidate in his past lives has 
left a trail of darkness composed of effete emana- 
tions which he has failed to redeem. This is often 
poetically alluded to as the trail of the serpent. In 
The Voice of The Silence, "It is the shadow of thyself 

1 St. Matthew XXV, 30. 

a A day period of the world at contrasted with a night period or 
Pralaya. 



324 The Voice of Isis 

outside the Path, cast on the darkness of thy sins." 
Like the darkness of Chaos, it is pregnant with the 
germs of that which must ultimately come into the 
light and be redeemed by its creator, i. e., be trans- 
muted into force that shall bring forth life more 
abundantly. 

It was only in the fourth day that the path of the 
earth's evolution was really entered upon, i. e., when 
the greater and lesser lights, the stars, the days and 
nights, the times and seasons were created. Only 
when this period was reached was the earth ready for 
the evolution brought over from a past world period 
to continue. 

The loathsome, creeping things of the darkness were 
not created by the Light, but were all in the darkness 
simply awaiting the energizing force of the Light 
to quicken them. The Light was sent into the dark- 
ness not to stir up evil, but by the Omniscient Law, 
which recognizes that only by fulfilling its destiny can 
evil be transmuted into good. The evil weeds must 
grow, be uprooted, die and give their life-force back to 
the soil ere their power can manifest as food for man. 
So with the candidate. He must penetrate the darkest 
depths of his being and not deny, but face and recog- 
nize all he finds therein ere he can conquer. This he 
does through the divine power of The Christ when he 
says, "Let there be light." There is then created in him 
two great lig'hts, the masculine force of the sun and the 
feminine force of the moon, the greater to rule the day, 
the lesser the night. The sun-force is the masculine 
quality of reason which gives him light, courage and 
power to grapple with the temptations and problems 
of his everyday life, while the moon-force — lesser only 
in that it is less apparent — is the Intuition which will 
illumine his darkest night and give him the power to 
understand the forces of his inner nature. 



The Light 325 

The instant the Star of Initiation sends down this 
two-fold ray into the darkness of his earth life, every 
creeping thing, not only in his heart, but also in his 
environment, comes forth. The instant he speaks the 
Word all this darkness filled with thought-currents of 
evil — powerful, malignant, deadly beyond description, 
but heretofore inert, asleep, quiescent — will be stirred 
into life, in this way precipitating his Karma upon 
him. In the creation of the earth it was the assembled 
gods (the Elohim) who spake the word, "Let there 
be light," and the chaotic mass out of which the new 
world was to evolve began its evolution. It was the 
off-scourings, that which They themselves had left 
behind when They reached Godhood in previous world 
periods, and consequently it was Their own creation 
and Theirs to redeem. So with the candidate. The 
darkness, the evil, the temptations that assail him are 
his own. He has created them in ages past. And 
when he comes to this conscious step where, of his 
own free-will, he determines to create his Immortal 
Body, all this left over material must be purified and 
redeemed ; for only out of it can he build his Immortal 
Habitation. 

Try to think of a God Consciousness so comprehend- 
ing this law and so recognizing the needs of the crea- 
tures of the darkness and so filled with the determina- 
tion to bring good out of evil that, in speaking the 
Word, the full comprehension of all the steps of the 
evolution of the chaotic darkness, with the attendant 
suffering and misery through which it must pass as 
a result of the purifying process, was fully grasped. 
Moreover, having the consciousness that the light He 
was sending into the darkness was His very Self, His 
consciousness, His Soul-substance, and that all the 
sin and suffering that man would pass through on the 
road to redemption would be His own; that every 



326 The Voice of Isis 

pang must be suffered with a God-like power to under- 
stand its keenest bitterness, still, in divine compassion, 
seeing the end from the beginning, would neverthe- 
less speak the Word unfalteringly, and in speaking 
it take upon Himself the whole burden of the trans- 
mutation of the evil into good. This is the true mean- 
ing of redemption through love. For the world was 
not redeemed by the crucifixion of one man — however 
much that man manifested The Christ, and however 
much of the darkness was redeemed thereby. It is 
by the daily and hourly crucifixion of the conscious 
power of the Godhead (The Christ) in matter, the 
living in the darkness and suffering with it until, atom 
by atom, the whole is transmuted by His life-force 
(the symbolic "blood,") that the redemption of the 
world is accomplished. Every earnest Soul who recog- 
nizes this principle and takes upon himself the redemp- 
tion of his own creations thus becomes a redeemer 
to that extent, and releases The Christ from the cross 
through the crucifixion of his own personality. 

Do not think of The Christ as an impersonal force, 
a mere law of action, but as the full consciousness 
of the Godhead which is literally "wounded for our 
transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the 
chastisement of our peace was upon him ; and with 
his stripes are we healed," 1 for "In him (The Christ) 
dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." Some 
conception of this divine sacrifice must penetrate the 
consciousness of every sincere follower of the Light, 
and in a lesser sense he must have the same willing- 
ness to suffer and endure with and through his crea- 
tions — and for the same reason, i. e., that Divine 
Compassion which "would not that any perish, but 
all have eternal life." This is an effort to make your 
finite minds grasp an infinite reality, but at least a 

UToiah LIII, 5. 



The Light 327 

faint conception of this Infinite Love and Compassion 
and yearning to create and redeem must be grasped 
ere the candidate can hope to set foot upon the Path. 
For this thought is the illumination given by the Star 
of Initiation or the Light shining in the darkness. 
Only the light of this star or this Divine Love can 
give him strength to brave "the lions in the way." 
The vision of the Light may be but a fleeting glimpse, 
but it will awaken within him a response that will 
forever urge him on until victory is attained. 

If you carry this lesson into your own lives you will 
see why so many undreamed of trials and temptations 
are the first result of your determination to lead a 
spiritual life. The more powerful the Light, the 
more earnestly you determine to lay every corner of 
your life open to it, the more you let the Light shine 
out into the darkness of surrounding conditions, the 
more will the germs of unsuspected traits and tempta- 
tions awaken to life and assail you and evil conditions 
surround you, conditions of sickness, poverty, lack 
of love and. appreciation and many other adverse 
things. These conditions do not come to you to hurt 
you, nor are they sent by any great Being who desires 
to see you squirm — as a scientist might impale a 
beetle on a pin or cut out a frog's heart to see how 
long it would beat — but they come to you, their cre- 
ator, to be redeemed because they were latent in your 
personality, and the first beams of The Christ-star 
penetrating the darkness awakened them to life. They 
are not sent to see you prove your strength by con- 
quering them, although you grow stronger with 
everything you conquer, but they are the denizens of 
your deep, creatures of your own past evil thoughts ; 
the devils which behold The Christ (the Light) and 
tremble. The word tremble is not used here with the 



328 The Voice of his 

idea of fear, but with the idea of quivering with the 
vibrations of the new life as it imparts a higher rate 
of vibration to the latent substance of evil. Hence a 
recognition of this fact and a determination to re- 
deem all by the power of The Christ will transmute 
it into good. 

Therefore do not be surprised if things assail you 
more than formerly. Do not expect that seeking 
for Spiritual Wisdom will make life easy or will 
mean that all your trials are over. Do not seek The 
Christ-life for the purpose of making your pathway 
in life smooth, your body free from disease or your 
environment free from inharmony and trial, for if 
you seek it for this purpose know well that you 
have not really spoken the creative Word and must 
reap bitter disappointment. These things must come, 
but if you are strong and determined and earnest 
and fearless, and keep on crying, 'Let there be light," 
you will have the power of the Light to pass this 
step; for this step is the destruction or transmuta- 
tion of all temptations into the strength necessary 
to enter consciously into the Path. 

Take courage. Never say, "I cannot," for by the 
power of The Christ within you can. There is 
nothing in yourself or your environment that you 
cannot transmute into good, for all constitute the 
"worldly goods" given you by your Father-in-heaven, 
out of which you must create your Immortal Hab- 
itation. Whatsoever you put behind you and say 
you cannot conquer today, must pass into the outer 
darkness (outer, in that it is out of your present 
life), there to remain until you are strong enough 
once more to take it up and redeem it. 

Your loving Father will help you. In tenderest pity 
he sees your struggles and your despair. But if you give 



The Light 329 

up and cry "I cannot," then, in mercy, you are lifted 
out of the Path and another night's sleep is given you in 
which to gather strength — you must await the light 
of another day. For, know well that you must come 
again and take up the task again and again until all is 
redeemed. 

It is often remarked that many reach a certain point 
of development and then apparently fall back. This 
means that they have failed in some important task 
and are awaiting the coming of a new day period. 
But "the enemies he slew in the last battle will not 
return to life in the next birth that will be his." 

Fear not. Go forward, even though the darkness 
be full of life. "If thou wouldst not be slain by 
them, then must thou harmless make thy own crea- 
tions, the children of thy thoughts, unseen, impal- 
pable, that swarm around humankind, the progeny 
and heirs to man and his terrestrial spoils." 1 But 
if thou "Fix thy Soul's gaze upon the star whose 
ray thou art," it will lead thee into the Path. 

Be not discouraged, for you are able and strong. 
You shall come forth victorious, but ask not that one 
drop of bitterness pass until all is transmuted ; until 
you have drained the cup, and in its dregs have 
found the Jewel of Great Price, for which a man will 
sell all that he hath to possess. Keep on crying, 
"Let there be light." Create and redeem. For 
thereby shall you pass through the fifth and sixth 
periods and shall come to the seventh, when ye 
shall rest from your labors and the God Within 
shall see His creations and pronounce them good. 

Just as this is true of each individual, so is it 
true of this Movement. And as a Movement it 
must pass through the same periods or stages. The 
trumpet blast has gone forth, "Let there be light!" 

1 The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment III. 



330 The Voice of I sis 

and all the hosts of evil are stirring into activity 
at the sound. The Movement must be created by 
the united effort of every candidate, for each is in- 
dividually responsible for its success. "Wherefore 
take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye 
may be able to withstand in the evil day, and hav- 
ing done all, to stand . . . and above all, taking 
the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to 
quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." * 

*Ephesiam VI, 13-16. 



CHAPTER XXV. 

THE TWO TABLES OF STONE. 

"And he gave unto Moses, when he had made 
an end of communing with him upon Mount Sinai, 
two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written 
with the finger of God."— Exodus, XXXI-18. 

"Therefore, the Kabalists say correctly that 
'Man becomes a stone, a plant, an animal, a man, 
a spirit, and finally God,' thus accomplishing his 
cycle or circuit and returning to the point from 
which he started as the Heavenly Man. The 
Secret Doctrine," Blavasky, Vol. II, 196. 

The great Law of the Universe, that which mani- 
fests forever in man, atom and world as the law of 
spiritual evolution, works forever onward and up- 
ward toward more perfect manifestations. This 
great Law, or the Flame of Divine Love burns 
forever, sending out its light, its sparks and its 
fire-mist, which, cooling gradually, condenses into 
ethereal and later into what we know as dense mat- 
ter, producing the physical aspect of planets, crea- 
tures, men. The law under which this force of 
Divine Love operates is unchangeable, but its mani- 
festations in any system of worlds are guided and 
varied by the Planetary Deities or the Divine Intel- 
ligences ruling the planets composing the system. 
In our solar system these great Beings are called, 
in the Bible, the Archangels or the Elohim 1 and in 
the Eastern teachings, the Rishies. 

This earth is the culminating point of this system, 
but in some respects the least evolved. It is the 
point of greatest descent, the lowest arc of outward 

l Note use of the plural in Genesis iii, 22. 



332 The Voice of Isis 

ongoing - , where, having reached its lowest mani- 
festation in matter, the Law must turn and evolve 
upward. Ere the Law can gather up the forces of 
the other six planets, complete the last note in the 
octave of this solar system and make it the first 
note of a higher octave of planetary manifestation, 
there must be a great testing and balancing, both 
of its inhabitants and of the planet as a whole. 

In the foundation of this solar system it was the 
force of Saturn — as Lucifer, Star of the Morning — 
that was the first to emanate from the symbolic 
dot in the circle and expand into the circle itself, 
or the limits of manifestation during this great 
cycle; the circumference of which God is the center. 
His is the force of inertia, of stability, of perfect 
balance of the positive and negative forces, without 
which a cosmic center could not manifest in matter; 
without which the other planetary forces could not 
act ; and as Cronus the Reaper his force will be the 
last to be withdrawn or return to the bosom of the 
Infinite. It is Saturn who says : "I am Alpha and 
Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and 
the last." 1 In the book of Hermes we read : "Among 
the Gods is none like unto him, into whose hand 
are committed the kingdoms, the power and the 
glory of the worlds. . . . Many names hath God 
given him, names of mystery, secret and terrible. 
God calleth him Satan the Adversary, because Matter 
opposeth Spirit, and Time accuseth even the saints 
of the Lord. . . . For Satan is the magistrate of 
the Justice of God (Karma) : he beareth the balance 
and the sword. . . . Therefore Satan is the Min- 
ister of God, Lord of the seven mansions of Hades 
(matter, our earth), the Angel of the manifested 

1 Revelation XXII, 13. 



The Two Tables of Stone 333 

worlds." x As the Great Tester 2 and Initiator, Saturn 
initiated man into the mystery of the power to 
create, by the right use of which he shall eat of 
the Tree of Immortal" Life and become as the gods. 3 
It is the perfect balancing of its positive and nega- 
tive manifestations and the right use of this godlike 
power to create that is the great test of mankind. 
Upon the mastering of this problem the fate of this 
planet depends. "Thus 'Satan,' . . . grows into 
the grandiose image of one who makes of a terres- 
trial, a divine Man ; who gives him, throughout the 
long cycle of Mahakalpa, the law of the Spirit of 
Life, and makes him free from the Sin of Ignorance, 
hence of Death." 4 

Saturn, then, is one of the Elohim who "falls" 5 
from heaven to take charge of the evolution of man 
on this lowest planet, the densest field of manifesta- 
tion. He it is who becomes the Law-giver, he 
who writes "with the finger of God" the great Law 
of Divine Love upon the two tables of stone, or 
man and woman, now for the first time manifesting 
in separate, dense, physical bodies. He stands upon 
the top of Mount Meru or Mount Sinai, the moun- 
tain of the gods, and delivers to man the Law. 
Those who can behold him see that his countenance 
— as Lucifer, Son of the Morning, the Herald of a 
new day — shines with the light of Divinity, but for 
the multitude he is hidden by the devouring fire and 
the clouds of smoke and they know him only as 
the Tester, the Adversary. For the enlightened he 
is the Fire of the Lord ; for the multitude, the cloud 
upon the mountain. This same idea is symbolized 

1 Quoted in The Perfect Way, Kingsford Appendix XV. 

1 Job, chapter I. 

* Genesis, III, 22. 

4 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatskv, Vol. I, 220. 

■ Isaiah, XIV, 12. 



334 The Voice of Isis 

in the Bible by Moses receiving the Law on Mount 
Sinai, Mount Sin, the Mount of the Moon, or gen- 
eration and regeneration. "The numbers of the 
name 'Moses' (345) are those of 'I Am That I Am,' 
(543), so that Moses and Jehovah are at one in 
numerical harmony." 1 But the numbers are re- 
versed, hence Moses is but the reflection on earth of 
the Law-giver on high. Therefore, I Am That I 
Am, Moses, Mikael-Jehovah, the tribal god of the 
Hebrews, and Satan or Saturn are all symbols of 
varying aspects of the one great Law-giver. 

In all philosophies and scriptures we find the term 
"stone" used not in a literal, but in a mystical sense. 
One fundamental meaning of this symbol is that 
power or force which is the foundation of man's 
manifested existence. Man is symbolized by a stone 
because here on this lowest of the planets he has 
reached his densest expression or state of con- 
sciousness, a state so dense — from the viewpoint of 
his Divine Consciousness — that it is like that of a 
stone as compared with man. The old Alchemists 
also used the term "stone" in a symbolic way. One 
meaning of the Philosopher's Stone, the Alkahest 
or Elixir of Life is the perfect blending of the mas- 
culine and feminine forces or the transmutation of 
the base principles into a perfect harmony which 
turns everything it touches into pure spiritual gold. 

Only when man had reached the point of densest 
materiality did the Great Law, working through 
Saturn or Mikael-Jehovah, make it possible for him 
to manifest this foundation stone of his spiritual 
evolution upon two separate tables. Hitherto man 
had been androgynous and ethereal, but because he 
had reached his densest state it was necessary that 
this "stone" be broken or that the positive and 

i The Secret Doctrine, Vol. 11-568. 



The Two Tables of Stone 335 

negative aspects of the creative force be separated 
in order to manifest in physical matter. For the 
dense animal bodies of the first physical race 1 (the 
Third Race) were able to manifest only the lower 
aspect of the positive force and were utterly unable 
to manifest the negative or feminine force. 

The perfect balancing of these two forces — which 
Saturn demands before the Soul, on its return jour- 
ney, can reach its Father's house — is the great task 
which humanity must fulfill in spirit and in truth. 
But it can be fulfilled only when the two tables of 
stone become one. The positive aspect of the Law 
is written upon the masculine table in positive, 
raised letters. This table has been set up in the 
market-place and its laws have dominated the world. 
The negative aspect is graven deep into the feminine 
table and its markings have been filled with the 
mire and filth of man's lusts, so that for ages he has 
been unable to read the writing and has imagined 
that the Law was written only on his own table and 
that the feminine table was a blank given to him 
as a toy, upon which, with his soiled and clumsy 
finger, he could trace whatever characters he de- 
sired. Sometimes he has striven to write beautiful 
eulogies, but in most cases lust and dominion have 
been his themes. And so through all the Dark 
Ages of man's mentality the idea prevailed that 
this feminine stone was man's, to use as he would. 
But the fires of suffering into which man has cast 
the negative stone is purifying its clay and is burn- 
ing the divine characters into her Soul so that 
she knows the law of her being is Divine and is per- 
verted only by man's refusal to recognize the writ- 
ing and give her her true place by his side. 

1 The first two Races were ethereal, not physical. 



336 The Voice of Isis 

In the Bible we read of the stone that was rejected 
by the builders, but which, through the power of 
The Christ is to become the chief stone of the corner. 
But this mystic stone can not be perfected and 
become the cornerstone of the Temple of the New 
Humanity until its two halves are united, until the 
positive letters of the one fit into the negative 
characters of the other and the two are fused into 
one through the power of The Christ. Until this 
cycle in the world's history every system of religion 
and exoteric philosophy has rejected the feminine 
stone and either taught the absolute separation of 
the sexes — segregating women in convents and men 
in monasteries — or has in some way rejected woman 
and forced the stones to remain separate, even to the 
extent of denying to woman a Soul and barring her 
from Paradise except to minister to man's desires. 
The day of the fulfillment of the prophecy is now 
dawning, and those who can grasp the significance 
of the blending of the two tables of the Law have 
a great work to do, that the coming sixth sub-race 
may lay this chief cornerstone, upon which alone 
the Temple of Humanity can be erected by the 
Sixth and Seventh Great Races. 

Humanity is facing its great Initiation. Mikael- 
Moses has brought down the two tables of stone. 
And it must be you, if you are ready with clean 
hands and a pure heart, who must set up these tables 
in the Holy of Holies, instead of the market-place, 
and read out of them the Law to the children of 
earth who are so eagerly waiting to learn. Indi- 
vidually, at the very entrance to the Path back to 
Eden, there confronts you the Angel of the Flaming 
Sword, Mikael, the great Regent of Saturn, with 
the two tables of the Law. He gives them to you 



The Two Tables of Stone 337 

saying: "This is the Law; this the problem. Learn 
ye it. Work it out and teach it to the children of 
earth." Why is it such an enigma? Why must 
the cloud and the burning of the mountain hide 
him from your sight? Why do you let the world 
go on worshiping the golden calf, leaving the great 
problem of the Law to be solved by the few who 
are unafraid and who are willing to climb the Mount 
of Attainment and receive their great test? 

The children of earth are making mock, are degrading 
themselves and burying the Law beneath the hor- 
rible mire of their own sensuality, because they 
will not read it from its two tables. Again and again 
have the Prophets of the Lord sought to bring the 
Law before the multitude. And many sincere teach- 
ers who have led their followers out of the dark- 
ness of Egypt, after wandering many years in the 
wilderness and laboriously climbing the mountain 
and receiving the dual Law, have, nevertheless, 
cast it out of their control and broken it. And even 
though they may be the means of pointing the way 
to the Promised Land to many followers, these 
teachers, like Moses, will be debarred from entering 
in during this incarnation. 

It takes clean hands and pure hearts and brave, 
determined Souls to lift this banner of the Law 
before the world, but it must be accomplished. This 
is the beginning of a new cycle, when an advanced 
step must be taken in this old, old problem. Every 
Soul who is now interested in it has in ages past 
been among those who have tried and failed and 
suffered. But there must now come the strength 
of all the past efforts and the wisdom which the 
suffering has impressed upon each Soul. Many 
as women have had the iron of slavery driven deep 



338 The Voice of his 

into their Souls and hence find within them an in- 
born quality which cries out not for vengeance, but 
recognition, equality and readjustment. Others as 
men have helped trample under foot the feminine 
stone and striven to obliterate the writing of the 
finger of God, yet have found their boasted suprem- 
acy unsatisfying. They have felt the need for some- 
thing more than a plaything, more than a household 
drudge and child-bearer, more even than an en- 
shrined idol. The Soul knows its need of that 
help which can only come from the complement 
which God himself has supplied. For the manifes- 
tations of the Law having been separated, neither 
can be complete without the other. They are like 
children who are reading an interesting story, but 
who have lost the sequel. They find life an un- 
finished story. So the two types — all those who 
have reached the point of evolution where the Soul- 
cry is heard — are ready for the readjustment and 
are crying out for something that shall make straight 
the crooked paths and lighten the great burden of 
misery for the world. 

The natural outgrowth of these karmic conditions 
is unrest and dissatisfaction in marital relations. 
The woman-question is a burning one. Many are 
eager for political freedom, some few as eager to 
prevent it. But the political side of the question is 
but a bubble upon the surface of the greater ques- 
tion of the unification of the two tables of stone, 
showing that the great stream of humanity is pass- 
ing over shoals which cause the bubbles to come 
to the surface. Only as humanity reaches into its 
deeper levels and its foaming waters and conflict- 
ing currents have been blended into one steady 
stream, can it flow in peace and power down the 



The Two Tables of Stone 339 

channels of time, watering all the land and making 
the desert places in life bloom as the rose. Man- 
kind must recognize that the Law can never be 
fulfilled until its two tables have been cleansed 
from the pollution that obscures the writing and 
each has been given its true value and they have 
been fitted together and become one. Then it will 
be seen that neither man nor woman is superior, 
nor can either, by any possibility, rightfully usurp 
the place or perform the duties of the other ; in 
fact, neither one can fulfill the whole Law without 
the harmonious blending and co-operation of the other. 
Man is the positive expression of the Law on the 
physical-plane, but negative upon the spiritual- 
plane. Hence, it was necessary that he dominate 
during those stages of evolution in which the 
conquering of the rude outward conditions of 
physical life were of prime importance to the wel- 
fare of the Race. In the united life of the family 
to him belongs the conditions of the outer world, 
the physical labor, the fighting, the providing for 
and protecting of the home, the execution of that 
which is planned by the two, in fact, all outward 
manifestations of the Law. True woman is positive 
upon the spiritual-plane, where man is negative, and 
negative upon the physical-plane, where man is 
positive. To her belongs the control of all those 
questions which deal with the higher life. She 
must use her intuition in the directing of all activ- 
ities pertaining to the altruistic side of life, just as 
man uses his reason in worldly affairs. She should 
be man's moral and spiritual monitor and should 
be his source of inspiration and spiritual help. The 
two should work co-equally in all matters. 



340 The Voice of his 

Many masculme Souls now incarnated in feminine 
bodies are working strenuously and with all the 
masculine characteristics to bring about the polit- 
ical freedom of woman which they were instru- 
mental in preventing her from obtaining in the past. 
But it is the true feminine influence that is needed 
in the political arena, not masculine influence 
in feminine garb; for it is just as necessary there 
as in the home, the state and nation being 
but a larger family. No business or worldly affairs 
should be carried on without the inspiration and 
moral sanction of woman, and no feminine plans 
be carried out without man's active help and co- 
operation in making them positive and practical 
on the earth-plane. In other words, woman, while 
she cultivates her intuition, love, sympathy and 
spiritual aspiration, should have those qualities 
balanced by reason, logic, courage and common- 
sense. Man, while cultivating the positive qualities 
of courage, reason and executive ability, should 
balance them with love, sympathy and intuition. 
The two should blend perfectly just as Spirit pene- 
trates matter and is the cause back of all outward 
evolution, yet without which outward form it could 
not manifest on earth. Just as both sun and water 
are essential to the growing plant, an excess of 
either bringing disaster, but the perfect blending 
of the two making the earth bring forth in abun- 
dance, so should the perfect blending of man and 
woman make this earth a fertile field for the perfect 
evolution of the New Humanity. Only thus can the 
two tables of stone fit into each other and be fused 
by the power of The Christ into the chief stone 
of the corner, upon which the fire of Divine Love 
may act co-equally to transmute it into pure spir- 
itual gold. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 

HEALING PRAYER. 

Oh thou loving and helpful Master Jesus ! 
Thou who gavest to thy disciples power to heal 
the sickl 

We, recognizing Thee, and realizing Thy divine 
presence within us, ask Thee to lay Thy hands 
upon us in healing Love. 

Cleanse us from all our sins, and by the divine 
power of Omnipotent Life, drive out the atoms 
of inharniony and disease, and fill our bodies full 
to overflowing with Life, and Love, and Purity. 

Many pupils when they receive this prayer either 
address it to a personal Jesus or refuse to use it 
at all because they object to praying to a person- 
ality, be he ever so godlike. We wish it under- 
stood, therefore, that in this prayer we do not 
pray to the man Jesus but that we recognize Him as 
the high Master who is at the head of the Healing 
Hierarchy, ever ready to answer such a call as this 
prayer sends out. Only such a call can pierce the 
clouds that hide the earthly from the Divine, and make 
a channel through which the divine healing forces 
can reach you. 

We also use the name Jesus because of its great 
potency, the name Jesus having been used for cen- 
turies in connection with the thought of personal 
help and healing power. "To utter a Name is not 
only to define a Being, but to place it under, and 
condemn (obligate) it through the emission of the 
Word to the influence of, one or more Occult poten- 
cies. Things are, for every one of us, that which it 
(the Word) makes them while naming them." x 

l The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I, 121. 



342 The Voice of Isis 

Therefore do not hold the erroneous idea that 
you are to worship any personalized deity, be He 
ever so high, but endeavor to realize the divine 
Presence within you of The Christ-force which the 
Bible allegory makes a living factor in the world 
and which the Master Jesus personifies. Pause 
for one moment and try to grasp the idea that to 
realize the presence of the Great Healer, as in the 
prayer you say you do, is for the moment, while 
the realization lasts, to become one with the 
Divine. You then understand that the Real Self 
is not a mere personality made up of wornout and 
dying atoms, but is something Divine, one with 
God, all holy and all powerful, one with all good 
from eternity to eternity. This realization may be 
but a flash, but in that flash you have partaken 
of all that can be imagined of power and strength 
and glory. With this understanding of the prayer never 
repeat it without pausing at the words and realiz- 
ing the Divine Presence within you, for it is not 
something outside yourself, but an inflow of the 
Divine made possible by the opening of your heart 
and consciousness. 

If your eyes could be opened to see the effect 
the repetition of this prayer produces on the higher 
planes, the forces it brings to your aid, you would 
realize its beauty and its power. 

When you say "lay Thy hands upon us in healing 
love," it is a literal adaptation of the words, "Thou 
hast made Thine angels Thy handmaidens, and Thy 
ministers a flaming sword ;" for the angelic hosts min- 
ister to all pure hearts who desire their help. The 
hands which you ask the great Master to lay upon 
your head are His powers to accomplish, which powers 
are executed by this host of angels who have the 



Healing Prayer 343 

power to carry the divine force to you. When you 
recite it in harmony, the angels crowd around you 
like flocks of doves, to ward off harmful forces 
and protect the germ of your physical, mental and 
spiritual life. For it is a spiritual battle-cry calling 
to your aid the angelic hosts whose joy it is to 
succor those who fight the good fight. The Bible 
speaks of the angels as always beholding the face 
of The Christ ; that is, their development is such that 
they can see nothing on the earth-plane but The 
Christ-principle, or the face of The Christ, in each 
heart. If that face is obscured by clouds of selfish- 
ness and impurity they cannot see you, and conse- 
quently cannot bring you help. But the instant 
the cry for help goes up from the heart, they fly 
to your aid at the command of their Leader. 

Angels have always been recognized, under vari- 
ous names, in all religions. They belong to a dif- 
ferent evolution from humanity, although closely 
allied, and necessarily have different lessons to 
learn and different work to do. They are com- 
plementary to humanity, strong where humanity 
is weak; weak where humanity is strong. They 
stand to humanity as a true wife should stand to 
her husband ; in fact, they may be said to repre- 
sent the feminine aspect of humanity. They are 
the "Ministers and Stewards of the Mysteries," the 
"hosts of the Lord" that carry out His commands. 
They are the go-betweens and messengers, and 
have a might and a power unknown to mortal man. 
We must never forget the love we owe these min- 
istering ones. 

Upon the highest plane of Spirit, life is the One 
Life which can be nothing but perfection. The 
repetition of this prayer is like a projectile fired 



344 The Voice of his 

through the earth's atmosphere creating a passage 
through which the One Life must necessarily flow. 
As it passes from plane to plane it manifests upon 
the soul-plane — the plane of creation and of re- 
demption — as spiritual love. Thus does the Son of 
God (the One Life) descend from His Father to 
redeem the world through love. When this spiritual 
love reaches the plane of generation, the physical 
plane, its manifestation in the body is purity. Thus 
The Christ manifests on the spiritual-plane as the 
One Life, on the soul-plane as Love and on the 
physical-plane as Purity. 

This is the rationale of all healing, and a thor- 
ough recognition and realization of the presence 
of this spiritual life-force, and its working out in 
a three-fold manner, produces that harmony which 
is health to both mind and body. It also har- 
monizes conditions in your environment. Unkind- 
ness or hatred in your heart produce inharmony 
and sickness by condensing your aura and shutting 
out this force of life from you. If you send a 
thought of hatred toward a person you put a wall 
around yourself which only your own loving 
thoughts, and prayers such as the above, can pierce 
and break down, and which shuts out the life- 
force from you and permits disease to flourish. 

Whenever you desire help, physical, mental or 
spiritual, either for yourself or others, repeat this 
prayer, meditating on each word and trying to 
realize its true meaning on all planes of your being. 
Realize that there are currents of spiritual force 
which are potent and bring renewed life and 
strength to your physical body as well as peace 
and content to your mind and happiness and joy 



Healing Prayer 345 

to your Soul. And in this prayer you are con- 
sciously invoking these forces. 

As the Master Jesus gave to His disciples the 
power to heal the sick, and has never withdrawn 
that gift, so every true disciple who firmly believes 
this, and faithfully strives to manifest The Christ- 
principle within him, has now the power, through 
the laying on of hands (by the summoning of the 
angelic hosts), to bring this One Life into mani- 
festation, and thus dissipate ills and promote health 
and harmony. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

THE SILENCE. 

"But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy 
closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to 
thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father 
which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly."— 
St. Matthew VI, 6. 

We have so many inquiries from our pupils for 
some method by which they can strengthen their wills 
and hasten their spiritual growth that we desire to 
give a brief outline of the first stages of this process. 

We cannot emphasize too strongly the fact that there 
is but one way to grow, i. e., according to the Law 
of Growth followed by Nature. "Grow as the flower 
grows, unconsciously, but eagerly anxious to open 
its soul to the air. So must you press forward to 
open your soul to the eternal. But it must be the 
eternal that draws forth your strength and beauty, not 
desire for growth. For in the one case you develop in 
the luxuriance of purity, in the other you harden by 
the forcible passion for personal stature." * In this 
one paragraph is contained the great secret of all 
growth and the student must grasp its significance 
and master it. Indeed, until the essence of the truth 
underlying the above direction has been mastered 
and incorporated into the consciousness, to attempt 
any practice calculated to unfold inner faculties is 
fraught with grave dangers. We begin this chapter, 
therefore, with the injunction to all our pupils to take 
the ideas contained in the above quotation and medi- 
tate upon them until they are fully understood — 

1 Light en the Path, p. 5. 



The Silence 347 

understood not as words merely, but as vital life ex- 
periences — ere they attempt further advance. 

The student should pause here and clearly distin- 
guish between concentration, meditation, prayer and 
entering the Silence. Concentration is focusing the 
attention upon a chosen object or idea. It is the 
first step toward accomplishing any given end, either 
in the physical, mental or higher worlds. Meditation 
is turning over in the mind a thought or idea that 
you may see it from every standpoint and grasp all 
its phases and relations. It is an active mental pro- 
cess which occupies the undercurrents of your mind 
even while it may be overseeing more superficial 
affairs. The proof that we can meditate while en- 
gaged in daily affairs is found in the fact that if we 
have some great joy or sorrow it will remain in the 
background of our consciousness no matter what we 
do to distract our attention from it. Apply the same 
principle to your spiritual life and make the attain- 
ment of that life your main thought and aim. 

Prayer is an aspiration of the Soul toward the 
Divine. It may also be a request, not for creature com- 
forts or physical things — answers to such prayers are 
but the result of mental magic — but for spiritual food, 
love, light, courage, etc. In fact prayer creates a mag- 
netic line of force which unites you with the supply. 
Entering the Silence is an ecstatic state in which the 
human consciousness is transcended and, while it lasts, 
all sense of the personality is lost. While we teach 
that life itself brings to the earnest seeker all the 
discipline necessary to strengthen his will, and that 
the ruling of his life brings the most rapid spiritual 
growth, still it is well to have a definite time set apart 
each day for concentration upon the end for which 
he is striving. 



348 The Voice of I sis 

To meditate upon the above quotation let the pupil 
set apart a certain time each day, preferably in the 
early morning - — rising ten or fifteen minutes earlier if 
necessary — and sit in a quiet spot (in the same chair, 
if possible) and repeat the foregoing passage with 
a prayer for light and understanding, and meditate 
upon it. Try to picture mentally the growth of a 
flower. Follow every step of its unfoldment ; first 
the tiny seed buried in the dark earth, then the force 
within that seed which makes it, bye and bye, burst 
through its confining shell. Let your mind enter into, 
in fact for the time being, become this flower. Dwell 
upon the period of darkness necessary while the seed 
is sending forth its thread-like feelers, groping every- 
where in the dark and gathering nourishment from 
the earth. With unerring instinct it follows the law of 
its being, selecting such nutriment as will assist its 
growth and rejecting that which is inharmonious. Fol- 
low the seedling through every phase of its growth. 
At each step apply the same law to your own growth. 
Think of the Soul as planted in the darkness and 
loneliness of the material conditions of this earth, yet 
containing within it the possibilities of fruition — its 
immortal destiny. 

Do not try to follow the seed through every step of 
its life-journey at the first sitting; but meditate day 
after day upon one step or stage of growth, correlating 
yourself with it until you are sure you have mastered 
its lessons and have realized their application to your 
own spiritual growth. Above all make the point 
very clear that the seed has no personal desire to grow, 
nor to excel some other seed, but that it is fully 
occupied in fulfilling the law of its being, "to open 
its soul to the air." When you have mastered one 
phase of growth you are ready to pass on to the next. 



The Silence 349 

And only when you have, at least in some measure 
grasped all the lessons thus taught you, are you ready 
to enter into the Silence, where you can learn from 
the Divine and hear the voice of your Higher Self 
"the Master whom as yet thou hast not seen but whom 
thou feelest." For only when the flower blooms does 
it open its heart to the silent power of the sun and 
drink in the magnetic forces which could not be assim- 
ilated until the bloom unfolded. In the same way must 
the student open his heart to the Sun of Righteouness 
ere he is ready to learn from the Voice of the Silence. 

Let no pupil think, however, that when, through 
meditation, he has reached the Silence, henceforth 
he has no need of meditation; for no one can enter 
the Silence until by meditation he has opened his 
heart to the influence of the Divine as the petals of 
the rose open to the magnetic influence of the sun. 
While an effort may be made at first toward its realiza- 
tion, later it must become a state into which you can 
enter at will, shutting the door of your mind on all 
daily affairs and finding rest, peace and communion, 
even in the midst of the turmoils of life. But remember 
that while aids, such as concentration, breathing, etc., 
are helpful in their proper place they do not of them- 
selves cause spiritual growth. They are only aids. The 
growth must come from dwelling in the consciousness 
of the Divine within you and the manifesting of The 
Christ-force in the daily affairs of life. 

When the ability to meditate has been acquired and 
the pupil is ready to enter the Silence, he should first 
spend a few moments in deep breathing, following 
the method called the "Complete Breath." The greatest 
factor in deep breathing lies in the thought held at 
the time. This is the difference between deep breathing 
as practiced for mere physical culture and for the 



350 The Voice of his 

control of the life-currents. While the physical cul- 
turist is breathing merely for health, the occultist 
realizes that much more than physical health is to be 
attained, for through the power of breath combined 
with Will, he can draw in the spiritual life-essence 
which permeates the higher strata of the earth's atmo- 
sphere. By the act of consciously breathing we cor- 
relate with this essence and draw it more completely 
into the body. 

This breath is the fundamental breath of the entire 
Science of Breath, and the student must fully acquaint 
himself with it, and master it perfectly before he can 
hope to obtain proper results. To accomplish this 
requires attention, effort and persistence, but it is 
essential to further the progress along this line. When 
fully mastered it will become automatic. Do not neglect 
or belittle it because it seems simple. 1 

The following exercise will give you a clear idea of 
what the Complete Breath is : 

(1.) Stand or sit erect. Breathing through the 
nostrils, inhale steadily, first filling the lower part of the 
lungs. This is accomplished by the diaphragm, which 
in descending exerts a gentle pressure on the abdominal 
organs, pushing forward the front walls of the abdo- 
men. Then fill the middle part of the lungs, lifting 
the chest and upper ribs. In the final movement, the 
lower part of the abdomen will be slightly drawn in, 
giving the lungs support and helping to fill the highest 
part of the lungs. The three movements are not sepa- 
rate, but continuous, the entire chest being expanded 
in uniform movement. Avoid all jerky movements, 
and strive to attain a steady continuous action. 

1 CAUTION. — Students should be careful not to overdo this, either 
by using too many counts or by taking too many breaths at one time. 
Best begin with two or three breaths and increase gradually. 



The Silence 351 

(2.) Retain the breath for a few seconds, or heart 
beats. 

(3.) Exhale slowly in the reverse order, chest first 
and abdomen last. 

(4.) Rest the same number of counts as in (2). 
The rule is to inhale for a convenient number of heart- 
beats (6, 8 or 10), retain the breath half this number; 
make the exhalation the same length as the inhalation, 
and the rest between breaths the same number of 
counts as in (2). 

During the inhalation hold the thought that you are 
breathing in the forces of love, strength, courage and 
purity, or any other virtues you desire; that during 
the pause they are filling you full to overflowing, and 
that during the out-breathing you are sending out 
help, comfort, health and love to all mankind. Think 
of what you need as flowing in direct from the Divine, 
thus making a direct line of communication over 
which the Divine can reach you. Dwell upon the fact 
that this divine force which flows through you is not 
your personal force, and therefore when you breathe 
out, determine that you will send out only the force 
of the Divine, untainted by your personality. Realize 
that you are thus creating a reservoir of power; that 
you can draw upon it in unlimited quantities, as a 
seed draws to itself the power of the eternal, and by 
assimilating it grows naturally, yet does not mon- 
opolize that power. Realize that this power will purify 
the vessel (the personal self, always to be looked upon 
as a mere channel) ; that you are simply filling up the 
vessel that it may overflow to all, as a flower sheds 
abroad its perfume; and that if you are thus enabled 
to help others it is not because of your personal attain- 
ments or power, but because of the power of the 
Divine flowing through you — because you have be- 



352 The Voice of Isis 

come "a center through which The Lodge can 
work." l Remember, therefore, that you must keep the 
channel pure and free from all contaminating influences 
that as little as possible of your own personality shall 
enter into the good you are enabled to send forth. 
For a seed must be a healthy seed or, no matter how 
much of the divine force is poured into it, it will never 
grow. Indeed, if it has a canker, the divine force will 
but hasten its decay. 

It is often a help to stand before an open window, 
especially one facing the East. Raise your arms in 
front of you, with fingers outspread, and try to feel 
the force like a tangible thing which you can grasp. 
As you indraw the breath, clench your hands and draw 
toward your heart, as it were handsfull of force, and 
feel it permeating your whole body. 2 Any action such 
as this will help you to realize that you are draw- 
ing in the Divine Life. Never, under any circum- 
stances perform this exercise when nervous, cross or 
while holding any unkind or vindictive feeling in your 
heart, or the consequences will be disastrous, for you 
will be drawing to you more of the same forces. If 
this exercise is performed in the evening, it will be well 
to fix your gaze upon the stars in such a way as to 
exclude all sights of earth, if possible. 

After a few short breaths, sit in an easy chair (always 
the same one and in the same place, if possible) or 
lie flat on your back with your arms outstretched in 
the form of a cross. Meditate a few moments and send 
up a strong aspiration of love — it should not even be 
a definite thought, but a great yearning for the Divine, 
and a realization that you, in your Higher Self, are 

1 See Chapter XXXIII. 

1 CAUTION. — Do not take this exercise more than three or four 
times at first, for it is a powerful heart stimulant. If you feel_ faint 
or dizzy, stop at once, lie down and rest, arid do not try it again the 
same day. 



The Silence 353 

the master, and in the words of Malachi: "If I be a 
master, where is my fear ;" x — then sink into the 
Silence. 

To acquire the ability to enter the Silence prop- 
erly will take time ; for you will find your mind fairly 
bombarded by thoughts, often of a trivial nature, 
which you must determinately still. This may re- 
quire weeks or months of practice ; for as you silence 
thoughts on one stratum of consciousness, your mind 
will still be active, but in a more interior way. "Merge 
into one sense thy senses, if thou would'st be secure 
against the foe. 'Tis by that sense alone which lies 
concealed within the hollow of thy brain, that the 
steep path which leadeth to thy Master may be dis- 
closed before thy Soul's dim eye." 2 Do not get discour- 
aged. "Have patience, candidate, as one who fears no 
failure, courts no success." When you find your mind 
wandering, bring it back and, if necessary, repeat, 
"Peace, be still." Often it is a help to repeat the word 
Silence or repeat your given name again and again. 
But when you have gained the power of Silence, stop 
even these helps. Your mind must be like a still moun- 
tain lake, without a ripple, capable of perfectly reflect- 
ing every passing cloud. If the surface of the lake is 
agitated, even by a ripple, the images on its surface 
will be distorted; so it is with the mind. Only when 
you have attained to this quietude of mind can you 
hope to hear The Voice of the Silence without the in- 
termixture of personality, and observe without distor- 
tion the heavenly images reflected in your brain from 
your Father-in-heaven. 

It is important that the student school himself to 
think definitely and clearly of the personal guidance 
of his Higher self — his Father-in-heaven who is the 

* Malachi I, 6. 

* The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment I. 



354 The Voice of his 

"I am I," while the personality is but the servant. 
Should a student attempt to enter the Silence with no 
definite idea as to whose voice he is listening for — 
who the Master is upon whom he is to fix his whole 
attention— and in a negative attitude, as so often hap- 
pens, he is in great danger of receiving impres- 
sions from astral entities, either departed friends, ele- 
mentals or powerful but perverted entities, who would 
deliberately mislead and deceive him and use him as 
a tool to further their own ends. For this reason the 
attitude of Soul that must always be held is one of 
deep humility and ardent, aspiring devotion to the 
Divine. There must always be the positive expectation 
of entering the presence of the Divine ; of listening 
reverently for the voice of your Father-in-heaven — 
"He that is of God heareth God's words." There must 
be a definite and fixed determination to listen to noth- 
ing else, and to permit nothing else to enter your aura. 
Have no fear, however, for "Fear, O disciple, kills the 
will and stays all action." "The fear of man bringeth 
a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall 
be safe." l Dare — Do — Keep Silent. 

If two or three are entering the Silence together 
let no one desire to be used as spokesman for the 
rest, for the very desire opens a door for personality 
and makes possible and easy delusions from the astral 
plane. Let each listen only for himself, not for an- 
other. If one should speak at such a time let the others 
know well that if the message is true and if they are in 
a state of mental poise, the endorsement will be given 
in their own hearts. This power of distinguishing intu- 
itively between the true and the false is often the first 
conscious touch between you and your Higher Self. 

That the Lord, or a Divine Intelligence, does thus 

1 Proverbs XXIX, 25. 



The Silence 355 

guide humanity through The Voice of the Silence is 
amply testified to and plainly set forth in the Bible, 
both in the Old and New Testaments, as well as in all 
other sacred scriptures. Indeed, the Bible is full of 
allusions to those who listened to the Voice and those 
who refuse to listen. As we said in a former chapter 1 
the Bible is a symposium of allegories illustrating the 
spiritual truths needed by the entire Fifth Race of 
the Red Ray. Hence, if, as plainly stated — in lan- 
guage so familiar as to be almost trite — the children 
of God were led and directed by the Voice in past 
ages, it is equally true to-day; for there has never 
been given to man any statement that would give him 
reason to believe that there had been a change in the 
laws of spiritual communication or that the teachings 
of the Master Jesus were no longer true. The Voice 
of God speaks to-day, to all who listen, as plainly as it 
spake to the pure in heart of old. "Trust in the Lord 
with all thine heart ; and iean not unto thine own 
understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and 
he shall direct thy paths." 2 

When Jesus told his disciples to enter into the closet 
and shut the door, the closet referred to the Silence, 
and the "door" which they were to shut was the door 
of the mind. The Father who seeth in secret is the 
Higher Self, who does not require words, but who 
seeth in secret, i. e., in the Silence, through vibrations 
of love. The open reward is the peace, comfort and 
spiritual upliftment which comes as the result of such 
communing with the Father-in-heaven. 

1 Chapter V. 

1 Proverbs III, 5-6. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 
nature's mystic alphabet. 

"I will meditate also of all thy work, and talk 
of thy doings."— Psalms, LXXVII, 12. 

"The man who is endued with this devotion 
and who seeth the unity of all things, perceiveth 
the Supreme Soul in all things and all things in 
the Supreme Soul." — The Bhagavad-Gita, Chap. 
VI. 

It is desirable that all occult students form some defi- 
nite idea of the true meanings and relations of sound, 
number, color and form, for they stand at the founda- 
tion of all occult training. Although this theme is 
so stupendous that nothing more than the briefest 
possible outline can be attempted in this lesson, still 
there have been so many vandal hands digging about 
this foundation — disrupting, disorganizing and giving 
mere surface interpretations, that many a student in 
his bewilderment thinks the foundation is tottering. 
This lesson is meant to be but a hint, an incentive to 
deeper study. For everything in Nature has its voice 
which speaks in tones so positive that it cannot mis- 
lead, if we open our ears to it. 

Every shade of color in Nature indicates a potency 
which can be measured by its wave-length and its 
rate of vibration, and have its tone determined. We 
read — "The very hairs of your head are all num- 
bered." l This is literally true, for the color of the 
hair together with its texture, determines the number 
of its vibration, just as the texture of a violin string 
determines the number and character of its vibrations. 

And the vibrations of the hair, as a part of the key- 

l St. Matthew, x. JO. 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 357 

note of the body, are one indication of the character 
or "the measure of a man." x 

Every flower and herb of the field, every leaf and 
twig of the forest, by its color and form, its 
odor, its environment and its manner of growing, 
proclaims in unmistakable language its nature, its 
potencies and its uses when interpreted accord- 
ing to the Law of Correspondences, "As above, 
so below." For all Nature-shapes can be traced 
back to and analyzed into simple geometrical figures : — 
@, — , A, D, O — just as all musical notes produce 
characteristic geometrical designs when made to pass 
through sand or other suitable material. 2 Do not 
think, however, that this analysis is a simple task, 
for very few colors stand out alone any more than 
there are straight lines or exact geometrical figures in 
Nature. We find a multiplicity of combinations of 
color and form, hence, to get their true meaning, they 
must be separated into their elements. 

Only the true student who can devote much time 
and study to the subject can hope to penetrate far into 
the secrets of Nature ; nevertheless we are told, "There 
is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed ; and hid, 
that shall not be known." We also read, "Help 
Nature and work on with her; and Nature will regard 
thee as one of her creators and make obeisance. And 
she will open wide before thee the portals of her 
secret chambers, lay bare before thy gaze the treasures 
hidden in the very depths of her pure virgin bosom. 
Unsullied by the hand of Matter, she shows her treas- 
ures only to the eye of Spirit — the eye which never 
closes, the eye for which there is no veil in all her 

1 For scientific recognition of this fact, see an article on the relation 
of hair to character by Charles Kassel in The Popular Science Monthly, 
September, 1912. 

3 See common high-school experiment in physics — covering a metal 
plate with sand and vibrating it. 



358 The Voice of his 

kingdoms." 1 This is not a chimerical dream, but an 
actual possibility. It is what is really meant by living 
close to Nature. 

Sound, number and color are the three manifesta- 
tions of Deity in Nature, Nature's alphabet so to speak, 
and these three produce a fourth, form. Loosely 
speaking, sound is the first letter of this Divine Alpha- 
bet, and according to the note of vibration (number) 
of sound is color produced — although the sound may 
not be audible to the human ear — and by the inter- 
action of these three is form created. Thus is the 
Word or the Creative Sound made manifest, for with- 
out these three factors nothing can be produced. 

That which is called the key-note of any personality 
is never one musical tone, but a combination of tones, 
a chord. There are many ways of finding this chord, 
but the surest is by listening in the Silence, first ask- 
ing for guidance, and striving to harmonize yourself 
with the Divine that is within you, your Father-in- 
heaven, then endeavoring to silence all other activities 
of your mind and listen for the answer. 

Many students make the mistake of selecting ex- 
terior colors and notes and surrounding themselves 
with them — because those colors or tones appeal to 
them — and imagine they belong to them. The effect 
of this is to hold back the development of their real 
key-note, for it is generally quite different from that 
which they imagine. The vibrations produced by the 
outer colors and tones focus upon the student and 
drown the inner. Moreover, your true color or tone 
is something which you must reach out for and strive 
to develop within you. The instant it is thus attained 
the next higher color or tone becomes your key-note. 
It may be said that man is continually playing his 

1 The Voice of the Silence, Blavatsky, Fragment I. 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 359 

Psalm of Life, in the base clef of human vibrations. 
Hence he experiences inharmony, sickness and sorrow 
until he listens to and strives to sing the melody of 
the treble clef as sung by his Higher Self, and make 
his base clef but an accompaniment. When this is 
done the base clef gives fulness and richness to the 
chords and makes the melody complete. 

There are three primary colors, red, yellow and blue, 
a trinity which may be compared to body, soul and 
Spirit. Each is produced by a particular tone with 
a definite rate of vibration (number) and wave-length. 
These three form the triangle, the first geometrical 
figure to manifest on earth. From these three emanate 
four other supplementary colors (the square), orange, 
green, indigo and violet, and by the blending and 
interblending of these seven, together with black and 
white, are all other colors produced. In numbers also 
the same law is operative, for by the blending of the 
first seven — together with 8, the number of evolution, 
in which the power of the numbers is evolved into a 
higher octave in the same way that the colors are lifted 
into a higher octave by the admixture of white, and 9 
(black) the number of Initiation — are all numbers pro- 
duced. 

In the musical scale we again find this corre- 
spondence, there being seven notes, the eighth or 
repeated note being the point of evolution into the next 
octave. The sharps raise the tones while the flats deepen 
them. The pause or interval in which the one octave dies 
and the new is born is comparable to 9 in number or 
black in color. Although on earth this pause seems to 
be silence, yet in reality, upon the spiritual-plane, it 
is a definite tone which comprises all preceding tones 
and may be called the assimilation of tones, just as 
black swallows up all colors yet on earth is no color. 



360 The Voice of his 

The seven colors are born from the pure white light 
(or no color on the physical-plane), which in turn 
is born from darkness (black). Hence black and 
white in essence are one and the same thing, the two 
ends of the Divine Spectrum, with all the manifesta- 
tions of color as vibratory steps between them. Pure 
white is not known on earth, what appears as white 
always being tinged with yellow, blue or sometimes 
violet. "According to the tenets of Eastern Occultism, 
Darkness is the one true actuality, the basis and root 
of Light, without which the latter could never manifest 
itself or even exist. Light is matter, and Darkness 
pure spirit. . . . Even in the mind-baffling and 
science-harassing Genesis, Light is created out of 
Darkness — 'and Darkness was upon the face of the 
deep' — and not vice versa. 'In him (in darkness) 
was life ; and the life was the light of men.' " x On earth 
all colors are swallowed up in black, for in black no 
colors arc visible, while all colors live in white. Black 
and white arc represented by the straight, vertical line, 
which after its descent to earth passes through various 
geometrical forms, the first of which is the triangle, 
composed of the three primary creative rays, their 
numbers being 3, 5 and 7. 

Red is the key-note of physical man and his evolu- 
tion, and its rate of vibration is the slowest of the 
three primary colors. Being the most physical, it 
lends its influence to all the others, yet within it are 
the potencies of all. It is a masculine, not a feminine 
color, although in a certain sense all three primary 
colors may be called "mother colors" in the same way 
that the three letters of the Hebrew alphabet — Aleph, 
Mem and Shin — are called "mother letters," and with 
much the same meaning. The Hierarchy of the Red 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I, p. 98. 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 361 

Ray 1 is the one now manifesting on earth, and when 
man has evolved beyond red, in all its varied shades, 
he will have become something more than what is 
known to-day as man. Within this Red Ray, however, 
all the colors manifest as sub-rays, more or less tinged 
with red. All colors are raised to a higher vibration by 
the pure white light of Spirit shining through them. 
Hence evolution through the Red Ray is accom- 
plished by the lightening and added brilliancy of its 
shades. For instance a pale rose-pink is the lightest 
expression of red, while the red of venous blood is its 
darkest. 

Red is the color of the vehicle of the life-force 
but not of the life- force itself (Prana) which is orange. 
Therefore, the blood through which the life-force 
manifests is red. Almost everything that grows, just as 
it pushes up through the soil, shows a red or pink 
surface, which later changes to green. All red 
flowers, fruits, grains, vegetables and meats tend to 
warm and enrich the blood and strengthen the physi- 
cal body. Some of the lower aspects of red are 
warmth, life, passion and war, while its higher aspects 
are strength, courage and love. The planet correspond- 
ing to the red ray is Mars ; its metal iron. 

Just as the Soul is the vehicle through which the 
Spirit manifests, so is yellow the vehicle through 
which the pure spiritual light manifests. Pure yellow is 
therefore the Soul-color, and according to its brilliancy 
does it show forth the overshadowing white light of 
Spirit. It is the messenger of the gods, for it governs 
the psychic powers by which the inspiration of the gods 
reaches the human mind. This is symbolized by the 
customary use of yellow or gold hangings upon the 
altar and gold fringe or embroidery on the altar cloth 
and b y the flame of the sacerdotal candles ; for yellow 

»Soe Chapter XIII. 



362 The Voice of Isis 

is the vehicle of the ray of pure Spirit or the Flame. 
It is the color which lends to all other colors their 
spiritual significance. All yellow flowers and foods 
are vehicles through which psychic force can enter 
the body to strengthen the psychic currents. A free 
use of yellow corn-meal in the diet and corn-water as 
a drink frequently proves a wonderful tonic, if not 
a cure, for certain psychic disorders. Its planet is 
Mercury, and its metal also. 

Blue is the truly feminine color. It is the color of 
the auric envelop and of the firmament which forms 
the blue arch of heaven, which shuts it in and protects 
it. It is inspiring and uplifting; for the firmament is 
studded with stars, which lift the thoughts above 
mundane things to other worlds. This is the office 
of blue wherever found in Nature, to inspire, uplift, 
soothe, calm and comfort. In all its meanings it is 
the opposite or complementary of red, while yellow 
lends its force to both. Blue being the color of the 
auric zone is the color of the Mother-principle which 
encloses, enwraps, spiritualizes. All blue flowers 
would have a tendency to allay fevers, cool and com- 
fort. Its corresponding planet is Jupiter; its metals 
tin and aluminum. 

Of the supplementary colors, orange is the color 
of the pranic life-force that flows in the blood. It 
is a cheering, warming, forceful color having for its 
planet the sun, the symbol of life physically and 
spiritually. Red and orange are the two most mascu- 
line colors, the one being the blood and the other 
the vital life-force in the blood. All orange flowers 
and foods contain an exceptional amount of life-force, 
and wherever orange is found in Nature it is vibrant 
with life-force. Its corresponding metal is gold. 
And because this metal absorbs and focuses the sun- 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 363 

force it was used to cover the roofs of many ancient 
temples, and for vessels used in certain sacred services. 
It is pertinent to the times to note that this highest 
metal, like the highest spiritual concepts, is now de- 
based and used for barter. 

Green is a feminine color, the middle note in Nature, 
F natural or fa, the middle principle between the mate- 
rial and the spiritual. When Nature strikes her true 
note and throws out her cheering green in the Spring 
it penetrates into the hearts of men and awakens in 
them a desire to grow, to do, to create, to accomplish. 
No one thinks of calling a tree spiritual, yet who can 
look up into the waving green branches of a noble 
tree and not have his Soul lifted up from Nature to 
Super-Nature? Green is the color of the human in- 
tellect (lozver manas), the highest point attainable by 
physical man and Nature. It is the key-note of the 
physical-plane, hence is always restful and pleasing to 
man. It is the color of worldly power and the suc- 
cess due to intellectual attainments, its lower aspects 
manifesting as envy, greed, etc. It is a necessary 
link between Nature and Super-Nature, therefore, do 
not despise this color or the humble works of Nature, 
or even a perfect animal-soul, for without its perfect 
functioning, there would be no stable basis upon which 
and through which the higher forces could act- 
There have been many ridiculous theories advanced as 
to why Nature is green, some holding that it is due 
to yellow sun-light pouring through blue ether, etc., but 
were this true everything would be green. Nature 
is green because green is the point or key-note in the 
vibratory scale to Which physical Nature upon this 
planet responds, and to which it has evolved. Its 
planet is Saturn, the Binder and also the Reaper, he 
who limits physical manifestation and reaps from it 



364 The Voice of I sis 

the seed of spiritual attainment. Saturn is the ruler 
of the earth insofar as the Saturn-force must be faced 
and conquered on this planet. Its metal is lead. 

Indigo is by no means blue, as so many mis-call it, 
but is a color by itself. It represents Spiritual Mind, 
the power of the spiritual-plane brought to earth and 
manifested through physical man, as contrasted with 
human mind or intellect. It is human intellect joined 
to Soul and permeated by Spirit, forming the higher 
triad or incarnating Ego. While green represents the 
highest point to which physical Nature and the intellect 
of man can reach, indigo represents this same intellect 
overshadowed and inspired by something from above, 
the Divine Mind. It is the power of inspiration (higher 
memos) j which enables man to project his consciousness 
into realms above those capable of being reached by the 
intellect alone. Like its ruling planet, Venus, indigo has 
its two aspects. For while it always represents Spiritual 
Mind, it is often submerged and held down to worldly 
concerns in spite of its ability to soar into the Uni- 
versal Mind and bring to man Divine Thought. All 
indigo color in Nature, if properly used, is helpful 
toward the development of this god-like power of lift- 
ing the human consciousness above that of the intellect. 
Its metal is copper. 

Violet is not an earthly color. True violet is not a 
mixture of red and blue — although it is usually repre- 
sented on earth by such a mixture — but is a color 
apart which belongs altogether to the astral-plane, its 
physical counterpart being but a reflection. It is said 
to be ruled by the moon, yet not really by the moon, 
even though moonlight contains a high percentage 
of violet and ultra-violet rays, for true violet comes 
from the Mystery Planet concealed from physical 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 365 

sight by the corpse 1 of the old moon, which will grad- 
ually disappear during the Sixth Great Race, allow- 
ing the Mystery Planet to be revealed to the Seventh 
Great Race. The potency and power of violet is due 
to the rays of this Mystery Planet penetrating to 
earth and creating the astral body, the body of sensa- 
tion in which the inner forces work. Where violet 
is found in Nature it tends to focus the astral currents 
and act on astral matter. In fact it has the myste- 
rious power of holding the potency of the astral and 
commanding its forces. And as the astral body of 
all things is the pattern of the physical, the violet ray 
can be utilized in perfecting an astral pattern of a 
superior form, and in destroying harmful astral mat- 
ter. 2 Violet has the power of guarding the astral, ad- 
mitting the helpful and excluding the harmful astral 
forces. It is ruled by the moon and its metal is silver. 
All other colors are mixtures or shades, or rates of 
vibration between these seven colors, together with 
black and white. 

Among numbers O symbolizes limitless time in 
eternity, unmanifested Deity. Its geometrical form is 
the circle from which all numbers are born. 

1 is unity, creative force, life, the Father-Mother- 
Son, descending to earth in an undifferentiated state. 
Its geometrical form is 0, the dot within the © or 
the germinal point of the mundane egg, the nucleus in 
the cell. 

2 is separation, the Father separates from the Mother 
and becomes mundane. The dot cannot manifest on 
earth without having two dimensions, length and 
breadth, and two poles, positive and negative, mascu- 

1 It is well known that our present moon is but a corpse, giving oft 
nothing but corpse-like emanations, hence, its malefiG aspects. 

2 The violet and ultra-violet rays are destructive to bacterial organ- 
isms. 



366 The Voice of Isis 

line and feminine. It is represented by two geometri- 
cal forms, either the straight vertical line | or the dot 
with two lines of force emerging from it, — both forms 
commonly found in Nature. 1 

3 is the Trinity, sacred and divine because it is 
the Father, the Mother and the Son manifesting in 
humanity, or man and woman united in God. Its 
geometrical form is the triangle. A 

4 is the completion of physical creation, the most 
perfect of mundane numbers as it holds within itself 
the power of 10, l-f-2+3-f-4=10. Its geometrical 
form is the square, □, the base of the pyramid. 

5 represents humanity or man, and is one of the 
most mystical of numbers ; for man is the climax of 
physical evolution, the crowning point of all the lower 
kingdoms and the forerunner and image of God. 
"Man is the universally structured type. In one 
aspect all lower types rise toward man and are com- 
pleted in him. In another aspect the specialties of 
type break up and distribute downward from man 
to form the lower kingdoms of life, as his proper base 
and support. Moreover, man is the only species that 
stands erect, with the cerebrum poised at right angles 
to the spine ; the only species that utilizes two limbs 
from the function of locomotion for the exclusive ser- 
vice of the mind and brain ; the only species whose 
length of the extended hands and arms is just equal 
to the height of the body; the only species in which 
the segments of the spine are the measures of the 
angles of the cube ; the only species with a spoken 
language, an alphabet, a recorded history, and a pro- 
spective future." 2 5 is also the number of the digits 
of man's hands. While some animals (anthropoids) 

1 The primitive streak emerging from the nucleus in the embryo, etc 
a The Romance of Revelation through Natural History. Edw. 
Whipple. 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 367 

have five digits, still the thumb, which in man is the 
great factor in the usefulnesr of the hand, is but rudi- 
mentary, and in primitive man noticeably undeveloped. 
Thus the size and shape of the thumb becomes an 
index to the stage of man's evolution. It marks the 
difference between anthropos and anthropoid. Its geo- 
metrical figure is that formed by man, his two feet 
outspread, his arms outstretched and his head upright 
forming the five-pointed star %■ , the magic pentagram. 
6 is man with something else added or man con- 
sidered as the Lord of Creation. 6 is primarily the 
number of Nature. It is the number of The Christ- 
principle, but only as it pertains to the manifestation 
of that Essence of Universal Power in Nature. Hence, 
6 pertains to man's powers over Nature. Its geo- 
metrical figure is the interlaced triangles. The tri- 
angle pointing upward is light, signifying man's 
Divine nature and his ability to receive from the Divine. 
The one pointing downward is dark, signifying his 
physical nature. The two intertwined symbolize the 
fact that only by the perfect blending of these two 
natures can man attain Wisdom. Its symbol is $. 
The interlaced triangles form the foundation stone 
of the objective universe. Man can only attain to 
Wisdom as he can correlate his consciousness with 
Nature. 

By some 6 is called the number of unrest and in- 
completeness. This is true in the sense that it is 
the unrest of Nature ever becoming, ever changing 
in form that the Great Creative Principle, The Christos, 
may manifest more fully. 6 is formed by a circle — ■ 
that which is unmanifested — with a line running up- 
ward, symbolizing the unrest of a determined aspira- 
tion reaching out to and trying to manifest ever greater 
degrees of Divinity. 



368 The Voice of Isis 

7 is the most sacred of all numbers, for it represents 
the point in man's evolution where he becomes more 
than man. Its symbol is the interlaced triangles with 
the dot in the center, the dot being the same germinal 
point or creative center found in the mundane egg 
which has now manifested through Nature and man. 
In other words, it is the perfect blending of the 4 and 
the 3, the human and the Divine. The 3 represents 
fire while 4 symbolizes the earth. Thus 3 and 4 or 
fire and earth must be blended by the great Mother- 
principle water, ere creation can be perfected. This 
symbol is called the Seal of Solomon or Wisdom $ 

8 is the number of evolution or the spiral motion 
of cycles, the Breath of the Cosmos. Its symbol is 
two ciphers touching and blending oo 8 is also the 
double square, or the foundation-stone with the corner- 
stone laid, upon which the higher life shall be erected. 

9 is the number of Initiation. It is that most mys- 
terious number which never changes. No matter how 
multiplied or added the sum of the resulting digits 
will always equal 9 i. e., 9+9=18=9 or 3 x 9=27=9 
etc. In it all numbers are swallowed up to emerge 
once more in a new cycle 10. Thus it is truly the 
number of initiation, for the various initiations are 
steps in the Soul-life. No matter how you have multi- 
plied sensation, experiences, knowledge or attainment 
you cannot pass your Great Initiation until you have 
returned to that from which you started, just as all 
multiples of 9 return to 9. 9 is also 3 x 3 or the 
trinity of trinities, Nature, Man and God. 

According to Hermetic philosophy, it stands for the 
Lamp of Hermes, the Mantle of Apollonius and the 
Staff of the Patriarchs. "Hermes has made it the 
number of initiation, because the initiate reigns over 
superstition and by superstition, and alone can advance 



Nature's Mystic Alphabet 369 

through the darkness, leaning on his staff, enveloped in 
his mantle, and lighted by his lamp." x 

In 9 we find again the cipher with which we started, 
but with a straight line descending from it. Later, 
when the Initiation is completed, this line will t^ke r"3 
place to the right of the cipher making 10, completing 
the cycle and making man more than man. 

All even numbers are mundane and pertain to 
the physical-plane, while all odd numbers are Divine. 
They contain something which cannot be measured 
by the two forces, positive and negative, always operat- 
ive on the physical-plane. These are the principal 
meanings of numbers, all others must be determined by 
the Law of Correspondences. 

The lesson to be learned from these examples of the 
One Law is the importance of little things, for to 
the occultist there are no little things. Everything 
that is, every thought, word and deed, has its 
sound, number, color and form. These letters of 
Nature's Mystic Alphabet are always creating — spell- 
ing out words, which words are telling the story of 
your life, writing it indelibly upon your countenance 
and upon the everlasting akashic records. Strive, 
therefore, to write the history of this day of life in 
letters of gold. Let all your colors be pure, bright and 
radiant ; for whether you realize it or not, your colors 
are continually emanating from you and are implant- 
ing your history on every person and thing you come 
in contact with. They also bring back to you their 
physical results which are built into your form so that, 
in very truth, your physical body — as well as the 
spiritual, mental and astral — is the result of your 
thoughts. Truly is it said of man, "As he thinketh 
in his heart, so is he." 

1 Transcendental Magic, Levi, p. 87. 

NOTE. — We request our students not to ask us to give their color 
or key-note, for until they set to work diligently to find out for them- 
selves jt cannot be given to them. Until they have reached a stage 
of nositiveness and have grasped some realization of how to serk 
within, their colors are too indistinct and changeable to be truthfully 
described. 



CHAPTER XXIX 

THE WORD. 

"And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt 
among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as 
of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace 
and truth." — St. John I, 14. 

"By the word of the Lord were the heavens 
made ; and the host of them by the breath of his 
mouth."— Psalms XXXIII, 6. 

As humanity advances a point is reached where 
there is a widespread recognition of an esoteric teach- 
ing beneath the letter of the law, and consequently 
many scholars are digging with vandal hands into the 
sacred Mysteries, and, without heeding the advice of 
the Sages, are flinging to the world all sorts of scholas- 
tic explanations, calculated rather to bring prestige to 
themselves than in any way to elucidate the Mysteries 
for the good of humanity. The day has passed when 
the majority of mankind is content to accept any trans- 
lation of the Bible as literally true, for, like all scrip- 
tures, its teachings are given by means of parables 
and allegories, both the Old and New Testaments set- 
ting forth the vital truths, in symbolic language; that 
is, the inner and deeper truths are veiled under symbols 
which of themselves inculcate a complete moral code, 
but which are not meant to be taken literally. 

From the beginning there has always existed an exo- 
teric teaching understood by the multitude, and an eso- 
teric teaching given only to the few whose training has 
fitted them to understand it. And in this cycle of 
spiritual unfoldment, it is advisable that a few of 
these Mysteries be at least partially unveiled, that the 
spiritual discernment of the few may lead to the knowl- 
edge of the many. 



The Word 371 

The Word is the voice of the Higher Self — The 
Christ within 1 — and is the personal God of each indi- 
vidual, because the fleeting human personality is but the 
shadow cast by that which is a direct Ray from the 
Divine — The Christ within. The sun forever keeps 
its appointed place in the heavens, but its rays reach 
and penetrate every portion of the earth. Without 
those rays nothing could be brought forth upon the 
earth, yet we do not deny that the rays are the sun 
although we know the sun is still in the heavens. Just 
so the Higher Self is a Ray from the Infinite, without 
which nothing spiritual can be brought forth in animal 
man. This Higher Self is dual: one with God, yet its 
earthly shadow — the human personality — is but an 
Emanation or Spark of the Higher Self clothed in 
atoms of physical matter, just as the sunbeam clothes 
itself in a growing plant and brings forth the 
perfected fruit. Thus the Higher Self is both the 
Father-in-heaven and The Christ within or the sun 
in the heavens and the sunbeam imprisoned within 
the fruit. 

The Higher Self overshadows the personality, ever 
striving to guide and teach it that it may bring forth 
the Spiritual Man — its fruit. This guidance is accom- 
plished in many ways; in dreams and visions, by the 
Still Small Voice — called by many the conscience — 
or, if these ways fail to impress the dense atoms of the 
physical brain, the personality is permitted to follow 
the dictates of its own rebellious animal will and learn 
through bitter experience to listen to and obey the dic- 
tates of the Word forever being spoken within. "Let 
me cease, O thou Perfectly Awakened, to remain as an 
Ape in the World-forest, forever ascending and de- 
scending in search of the fruits of folly." 2 Ordinarily 

1 See the Chapter on The Wisdom Religion. 
* Dhammapada. 



372 The Voice of Isis 

many, many lives are spent in sowing the seeds of dis- 
obedience and reaping the harvest of suffering ere the 
personality will heed the guidance of the Divine. 

This overshadowing Father-in-heaven is called by 
some the Over-soul and by the Roman Catholic Church 
the Guardian Angel whose power over the personality 
is exerted through the Still Small Voice. But in reality 
this Guardian is the Real Self — the God within, higher 
manas and Buddhi permeated by Atma — of whom 
the various personalities are but temporary garments 
worn for certain occasions and for certain purposes, 
but all of which are thrown off and disintegrated when 
the Real Self is clothed with immortality, just as are 
the blossoms when the sunbeam clothes itself in the 
fruit. Science has demonstrated that the fruit is 
all imprisoned sunshine and water (the Father- and 
Mother-forces — the dual aspects of the Creative Force) 
except a small residue of earthy salts left behind as 
ash. Just so will the Word gradually clothe itself 
in spiritualized matter with but a modicum of earth. 

One phase of this mystery is that as the disciple 
advances along the Path to Mastery, the Word be- 
comes manifested to the human consciousness for pur- 
poses of revelation. Even if it be but for a momentary 
flash that experience is evidence of an advanced step. 
Ultimately the manifestation of the Word or the Christ- 
consciousness will become continuous, as in the case 
of the Master Jesus who said : "I and my Father are 
one," meaning that His personal human consciousness 
was so blended with the Divine that at all times He 
could function in the consciousness of His Father-in- 
heaven. When this point is reached the Word is con- 
sciously incarnated in the flesh, or the fruit is per- 
fected. 

This Christ-consciousness at first may come only 



The Word 373 

in moments of extreme spiritual exaltation or ecstasy, 
when the human consciousness is transcended. Plo- 
tinus defines this as : "The liberation of the mind from 
its finite consciousness, becoming one and identified 
with the Infinite." By many teachers this is called 
Cosmic-consciousness, but Cosmic-consciousness is far 
more all-embracing - , for it is the power to enter into 
and partake of the consciousness of everything in 
the Cosmos, from atom to God. 

To one who has obtained perfect mastery over the 
lower personality, the Father (the Higher Self) and 
the Son (the personality) have become one, and the 
stream of Divine Wisdom flows uninterruptedly I 
through both. Physiologically speaking, this means 
that by repeated victories of the Word over the flesh, 
through the fulfilling of the Law in many lives, the 
Higher Self has gradually gained increasing power 
over its physical vehicles and at last has built up, atom 
by atom, a fleshly body so spiritualized that the atoms 
of its physical brain readily respond to the vibrations 
of the Christ-consciousness, thus enabling the Word 
to dwell in the flesh among men, or the Son to become 
one with the Father. The human personality by 
schooling itself to listen to and obey the Inner Voice 
at last so stills the vibrations of the human intellect that 
the Word is an infallible and ever present Guide in the 
smallest detail of the earth life. In other words, the 
flesh, which has so long warred against the Spirit, 
has become the willing and obedient servant, eager 
to listen to and carry out the will of the Father on 
earth even as it is done in heaven. 

Those who find it difficult to distinguish between the 
voice of the Higher Self (conscience) and the desires 
of the human personality can readily determine which 
is speaking if they will remember that when they ask 



374 The Voice of Isis 

in the Silence for guidance, and put themselves in a 
listening attitude of Soul, the reply will come either 
audibly or as a mental impression, but it will always 
come as a plain statement, clearly and concisely, re- 
quiring neither argument nor justification. The in- 
stant you begin to argue with yourself, or need to 
justify your decision, know well that you are not heed- 
ing the voice of your Father-in-heaven, but are follow- 
ing the wisdom of the human intellect or catering to 
the human desires. The personal self always endea- 
vors to justify its decisions with most plausible argu- 
ments, while the Higher Self simply asserts a fact or 
commands. 

The Word or the God within is Divine Essence or 
Love, for "God is love." The "lost word" in one sense, 
is simply the lost power of hearing the voice of the 
Father-in-heaven or realizing and correlating with The 
Christ within. The Wisdom Religion, as set forth in 
the Christian Bible while recognizing Gods, Angels, 
Seraphim and Cherubim and Spiritual Beings of every 
kind, no one would think of calling idolatrous. The 
recognition of all these manifestations of Deity in no 
way conflicts with the injunction, "Thou shalt have no 
other Gods before me," for it recognizes the divine 
unity of all. In its esoteric teaching it helps man to 
understand the deep, underlying meaning of this unity 
and to worship Divine Love, which is the God before 
whom alone man shall have no other and which alone 
he must worship in spirit and in truth. This one God 
he must seek and find in all things ; firstly, in himself, 
then, by a recognition of his oneness with all that is, 
must find Him in all things. He must reverence, but 
never worship or idolize, any manifestations of Him, 
be they Planetary Angels, Seraphims, Devas, Avatara, 
Masters or what not, nor must he worship Him as his 



The Word 375 

own personal God — the Word incarnate in him — but 
must learn to separate the Deity from His manifesta- 
tions and listen to the voice of the One God — Divine 
Love — of which alone it is said, "I am the Lord thy 
God." As Epicurus said: "The Gods exist but they 
are not what the multitude suppose them to be. He is 
not an infidel or atheist who denies the existence of 
Gods whom the multitudes worship, but he is such who 
fastens on the Gods the opinions of the multitude." 
Only they are heathen who refuse to recognize and 
worship Divine Love or the Word made flesh. 

Also bear in mind the creative aspect of the Word. 
We read much of the limitless power of the Word 
properly pronounced, and it is indeed all true, but be- 
fore man can pronounce it he must gain the power of 
expressing every tone and semi-tone in Nature, for 
only then can the creative Word be sounded. This 
creative Word is continually pronounced within him 
by his Father-in-heaven — for it is this Word pro- 
nounced within him that is bringing forth his spiritual 
life — but ere he can pronounce it for himself man 
must become more than man. 

All created things are the expression of coarser or 
finer vibrations, hence the Voice of Conscience (the 
Word), manifesting through exceedingly high and 
fine vibrations, finds it difficult to call forth a response 
from a mind given over entirely to worldly affairs and 
consequently attuned to a much lower rate of vibra- 
tion. But if the Voice is listened for and an effort is 
made to follow its guidance, it has the power to create 
conditions in which it can manifest more plainly. Since 
during involution "the word of the Lord" (or Divine 
Law), penetrating through all the spheres, created the 
heavens (firmament) and the earth and thereby in- 
corporated itself within every particle of matter com- 



376 The Voice of Isis 

posing them, so, during evolution, must it evolve back 
to its source, lifting up or redeeming all through which 
it has manifested, thus creating a "new heaven and a 
new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.'' 

The creative Word manifests through Nature as 
tone, color, form and number, just as a written word 
is composed of numbers, letters (symbols), syllables 
and the meaning expressed. Hence, every tone in 
Nature, be it song of bird, roar of beast, or thunder 
of heaven, be it tinkle of fountain, surge of ocean or 
rustle of leafy boughs, is an expression of the Word. 
And not a note in Nature could be left out and the 
creative Word be complete. Could man respond to and 
manifest his true vibration (his key-note) in the cre- 
ative Word with the single-mindedness of Nature all 
would be peace, harmony and love. Man alone strikes 
a discordant note, not only in himself, but also in the 
noises of his creations, factory whistles, street noises, 
etc. And the effect of this inharmony is impressed upon 
all creation so that "Thorns also and thistles shall it 
bring forth to thee." 

As man advances and learns to listen to the Still 
Small Voice and as the Word unfolds within his heart 
and manifests in his life, so will the tones of his voice 
grow more tender and loving and lose their power to 
wound. Thus will he become more able to comfort 
and cheer, lead and command, for he then expresses 
more of the creative power of the Word, until at last 
the Word is made flesh and manifests continually. 
This is the secret of the power of great speakers ; for 
they express, to a greater or lesser degree, the crea- 
tive power of the Word and literally create within the 
minds of their he?.rers that which they wish to im- 
press upon them. 

The pronunciation of the Word is a question of 



The Word 



377 



manifesting its guidance in the life; for every discord 
in the life produces a false note in the voice. Strive, 
therefore, to be absolutely true to the Word and be 
willing to face yourself and find and express Truth 
in every tone and action. Thus will you learn to take 
your true place and express your true key-note in the 
grand symphony of life. 



CHAPTER XXX. 

' ILLUMINATION. 

"I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man 
cometh unto the Father, but by me." — St. Matthew 
XIV-6 

"I am the Ego which is seated in the hearts 
of all beings ; I am the beginning, the middle, and 
the end of all existing things." — The Bhagavad- 
Gita, Chapter X. 

Pupils are asking continually for some formula, 
some prescribed "practical" thing to do to advance 
their spiritual evolution, complaining that they have 
read and studied all forms of philosophy and are now 
ready for something "definite." Because of this wide- 
spread demand there have sprung up on every hand 
those who are professing to give "practical" direc- 
tions that shall lead the pupil into Illumination and 
give him miraculous powers. 1 On the other hand, 
an equally large number are writing that they have 
studied various systems, spent large sums of money 
for "advanced teachings," received the lessons of the 
inner section of many organizations, have passed 
through many mysterious degrees of various societies 
with high sounding titles and yet find their hunger 
unappeased, the net result being a mass of so-called 
formulas and a greater amount of discouragement. 
Others turn to the Wisdom Religion, supposing that 
it has to do with the development of psychic powers 
and the performance of magical rites, but in truth it has 
primarily to do with the development of The Christ- 
force within and the showing of it forth in the life. So- 
called magic is dual. If it is the result of the recogni- 

1 Some self-styled authorities go so far as to guarantee Adeptship 
for a definite sum, or publish books which they claim contain the secret 
of all occult oower. 



Illumination 379 

tion and outward manifestation of The Christ within 
it is White Magic and right; if the result of seeking 
for power or personal stature, it becomes Black Magic 
and evil. Therefore, to all these classes of seekers, 
as well as to many other hungry hearts, we bring the 
old, old message, "I (The Christ Within) am the 
way, the truth and the life : no man cometh unto the 
Father, but by me." 

What is it that all are thus seeking? It is so-called 
Illumination, yet few there be who have any realiza- 
tion of what this means. We have considered various 
phases of this Illumination in previous lessons, 1 and 
we will try herein to show what the real Illumination 
is and how it is attained. Illumination is the perfect 
blending of the self with the Divine or The Christ- 
power, so that Divine Wisdom can guide every 
thought and act of the mortal man and the Light of 
Divinity can shed its radiance over the entire life. 

When it is remembered that the Bible story of The 
Christ is the most complete and all-embracing narra- 
tive ever written, not of the man Jesus or even of God, 
but a synthetic picture of the Son of God — the emana- 
tion from the Father, The Christ-force in humanity or 
the Word made flesh — which symbolizes the various 
steps each Soul must pass through and conquer, it 
becomes quite plain that as this union with the Divine 
takes place the life of the disciple must manifest Truth. 
The whole mysterious transformation must be a 
growth similar to the gradual assimilation of the life- 
giving constituents of the sun by the plant, until the 
full fruition or in-dwelling of the life-force is accom- 
plished in the fruit. When we grasp this thought firmly 
we will understand that we must and shall do the works 
of our Father in exact proportion to our ability to 

1 See Chapters XXIV, XXIX, etc. 



380 The Voice of Isis 

make the correlation with Him, just as the plant does 
the works of its father, the sun — first as the blade, then 
the ear, then the full corn in the ear. Therefore there 
can be no rigid observances laid down for the attain- 
ment of perfection any more than there can be for the 
perfection of every individual plant. There can, how- 
ever, be practices which develop the Will, awaken the 
Intuition and stimulate Aspiration, and there are envi- 
ronments which will foster spiritual growth, i. e., 
within the ranks of any spiritual movement whose 
teachings satisfy your Soul-hunger, but these have 
been fully covered in other lessons. 1 To the aver- 
age twentieth century student the effort to conquer 
himself is quite sufficient to develop his Will, and 
the only stimulant necessary is a burning, ardent seek- 
ing for a realization of The Christ-love. Illumination, 
however, can never be attained through the mere 
reading of lessons or the observance of rules. It 
must be the result of a vital force that comes into 
each life. 2 The gardener may prepare the soil, tend 
and water a plant, but the plant itself must assimilate 
the light and force of the sun and literally transmute 
them into living tissue within its body ere the blossom 
or the fruit can appear. So it is with the Illumina- 
tion that each Soul is seeking. Only The Christ-force, 
not only talked about and in a sense realized, but 
literally absorbed and built into living tissue in the 
flesh, the mind and the Spirit, can bring about this 
mystical union. It is The Christ and The Christ alone 
who is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life." 

As certain plants gather from the sun-force the 
power to produce poisons, so can man, by using for 
his own personal ends the godlike powers with which 

1 See Chapter XXVII. 

2 It is said there are as many ways of attaining illumination as there 
are human beings. 



Illumination 381 

he can identify himself, produce evil. We do not 
create power, we only identify our consciousness 
with the Divine which is all power, just as we might 
attach a wire to a dynamo and obtain power. 
Of the Divine Self alone it is said, "All power is 
given unto thee in heaven and earth." This is liter- 
ally true. All power is ours when we identify our- 
selves with the Divine, and the synthesis of all power 
is the ability to merge the personality into the Divine, 
or become one with the Father through The Christ. 
This gives all power because having accomplished 
this all things are possible. As man is endowed with 
free-will he can choose to take either the Right Hand 
Path, merge the human into the Divine and use his 
God-power to do the work of his Father-in-heaven, 
or he can graft his God-power on to the stalk of per- 
sonality and, by making the intellect alone his guiding 
star, deliberately forswear his Father-in-heaven and 
become a child of evil (or the devil) and do the works 
of his father the devil — the concentrated force of man's 
wrong thoughts, acts and creations, the perverted 
reflection of the Good Law (the Lord) on earth. By 
refusing to let the light of the Divine penetrate farther 
than the intellect, he closes the door of his heart and 
allows the Light to illumine only his human brain 
which, without the guidance of the heart, permits evil 
to manifest, especially intellectual and spiritual pride, 
which are the most subtle and insidious of all evils. 

Therefore, to teach mankind how to unfold inner 
faculties and how to use their power for personal 
ends, would be quite as reprehensible as for a gardener 
to propagate in a garden devoted to raising food for 
man, some poisonous vine which the gardener knew 
the very richness, of the soil, the sunshine and the cul- 
tivation would cause to grow and finally either destroy 



382 The Voice of Isis 

the food or impregnate it with poison. This is why 
the inner teachings of the sacred Mysteries are given 
only to the few. It is no Being who gives, it is the 
blossom of the Soul which opens and receives the 
Light of Illumination, as the rose unfolds its petals 
to the light of the sun. If you do not receive this 
Light, know well that the blossoming time has not ar- 
rived for you. Had it arrived no one could withhold 
the Light from you. 

When the divine mystery of the indwelling of The 
Christ has taken place in the Soul and the disciple has 
begun to realize in a vital, living way, that the over- 
shadowing of his Divine Self is a real blending or 
indwelling, then the works of his Father will unfold 
within him just as the blade, the ear and the full 
corn in the ear unfold in the plant. Then, and then 
only, is he ready for the inner teaching; for he must 
be trained to put forth his blossoms in the manner best 
for humanity. Each step gained must not only show 
in the life, but the powers that go with that step must 
also manifest. If we control one selfish trait which 
before held us captive we may know that we have 
taken a real step upward. And the first and greatest 
of all magical powers to be attained by the pupil is 
the magical power of controlling himself, of day after 
day mastering the little things, with no heroics, per- 
haps with no one to commend him or realize that he 
is making any effort, yet still controlling his little 
tempers, his little impatiences, little acts of selfishness, 
his tendency to criticize and all the little, trifling 
things he knows are wrong, but which seem too petty 
to be worth mentioning. 

Let no pupil ask for special lessons until these little 
things are in a measure conquered, for the building of 
these little lessons into his life is the most "practical" 



Illumination 383 

formula that can be given him. And if there is any- 
one who has thus assimilated The Christ and grown 
to live The Christ-life, who has gained the power of 
looking at the self, who has fulfilled the injunction, 
"Know thyself," yet who says he still lacks Illumina- 
tion, let him know well that there is some hidden 
corner in his heart or life into which the Light is not 
able to penetrate, some closed door which he refuses 
to open. To him we would say, Look deeper and 
meditate in the Silence and pray for a knowledge of 
thyself. At the same time go forth and help to 
bring the Light to some other Soul, for in so doing 
in some part of your nature you will find that which 
keeps out the full radiance of The Christ-light. Let 
him "Learn to look intelligently into the hearts of men. 
Regard most earnestly your own heart. For through 
your own heart comes the one light which can illumi- 
nate life, and make it clear to your eyes." 1 

Occult formulas are more apt to emphasize self- 
satisfaction and self-righteousness than to help toward 
self-mastery. John the Baptist had been educated 
in all the law of the Mysteries, had lived apart from 
the world in the caves of the wilderness, had fed on 
locusts and wild honey and had spent his life follow- 
ing out the most rigid formularies of the Essenees, 
yet Jesus said : "Verily I say unto you, Among them 
that are born of women there hath not risen a greater 
than John the Baptist : notwithstanding he that is least 
in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he." 2 This 
means that the very humblest person who has cor- 
related with The Christ within — which is entering 
the kingdom of heaven — is greater than even a great 
intellectual teacher such as John the Baptist. 

1 Light on the Path, Part II, Rules 10-12. 
'St. Matthew, XI, 11. 



384 The Voice of Isis 

Both intellectual development and heart development 
are necessary, but if the heart is first developed and a 
conscious union made with The Christ within, all 
things are revealed unto you. This is, as it were, the 
short cut to Mastery. 

It is a singular fact that none of the Great Teachers 
— Krishna, Buddha, Jesus, etc. — ever wrote a word or 
were, in their day, looked upon as great intellectual 
teachers, but the example of Their lives lives in 
the world to this day, and can never die, because 
They made this divine correlation, literally mani- 
festing God in the flesh. It is neither the words 
you speak nor the routine of your life that 
affects the world, but something more. It is the 
power of that which is "the way, the truth, and 
the life." In other words, both that which you 
teach and the example of your life must prove con- 
clusively that it is The Christ within you that work- 
eth through you both to will and to do. 

It must not be a mere lip-service, it must be so true 
and so convincing that it will radiate from you rather 
than be a garment assumed before the world or a 
mere intellectual cloak that blinds your own eyes, for 
The Christ within you must be the Truth as well as 
the Way and the Life. 

If there is any doubt left in regard to the Path 
we point out to reach this attainment we will briefly 
recapitulate. 

Think only constructively if you desire spiritual 
growth. 

Do cheerfully and well the duty that lies nearest. 

Conquer the little faults as they show themselves. 

Never let a day pass without its period of self- 
examination, meditation and communion with the 
Divine. 



Illumination 385 

Do unto others as ye would that others should 
do unto you. 

Learn to love in its truest and grandest sense. 

Do not criticize others, even though your criticism 
seems just, for to do so you must dwell mentally in 
the conditions you criticize. 

Be not afraid to face and recognize your own 
faults. 

At the same time be not discouraged. 

Have perfect confidence in your power ultimately 
to conquer through The Christ within. 

For the voice of The Christ declares, "Lo, I am 
with you alway, even unto the end of the world." 

The following are the requirements given by a Great 
Teacher to those who seek Illumination: 

1. Behold the Truth before you; 

2. A clean life; 

3. An open mind; 

4. A pure heart; 

5. An eager intellect; 

6. An unveiled spiritual perception; 

7. A brotherliness for one's co-disciple; 

8. A readiness to give and receive instruction; 

9. A loyal sense of duty to the Teacher; 

10. A willing obedience to the behests of Truth 
once we have placed our confidence in and be- 
lieve that Teacher to be in possession of it ; 

11. A courageous endurance of personal injustice; 

12. A brave declaration of principles ; 

13. A valiant defense of those who are unjustly 
attacked ; 

14. A constant eye to the ideal of human progres- 
sion and perfection which the secret science 
depicts. 

15. These are the golden stairs up the steps of 
which the learner may climb to- the Temple of 
Divine Wisdom. 

All things are possible unto him who believes. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

THE SYMBOL OF THE SALT. 
"Ye are the salt of the earth : but if the salt 
have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? 
it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast 
out, and to be trodden under foot of men." — St. 
Matthew V, 13. 

Salt plays a most important role in all life, both 
in man and in Nature. It has also played its part in the 
advance of civilization. The first great highways 
known to history were caravan routes formed by 
transporting salt from the deserts to points of civiliza- 
tion. Salt thus became the great reason for commu- 
nication between different peoples, and hence the 
means by which civilization spread. 

The use of salt marks an advance in civilization 
from a wandering nomadic life, in which the people 
subsist chiefly upon animal food containing a large 
proportion of salt, to an agricultural life in which 
vegetables requiring salt for flavoring form a large 
proportion of the diet. Salt in the diet is necessary 
for the health of all herbivorous animals. It is a 
necessary constituent of all animal tissues and of the 
blood. Experiments have repeatedly proven that the 
heart will not beat unless there is dissolved in the 
blood a certain percentage of common salt. Its use 
in every-day life is as a purifier and preservative, 
this being its chief function in the world. Like the 
heart of man, the heart of Nature will not beat 
nor will life continue without a proper proportion 
of salt, for salt preserves the force which makes life 
possible. 

Salt was one of the ingredients in the Great Work 
of the old Alchemists who reduced all elements to 



The Symbol of the Salt 387 

their mystic Sulphur, Mercury, and Salt, salt sym- 
bolizing that which purifies and preserves the life- 
principle. Salt is found in oceans, deserts, salt 
lakes, and mines, the latter being deposits left 
by the evaporation of ancient seas. But wherever 
salt is found the significance of its presence is due 
to its purifying and preserving qualities. 

The earth is a living entity, and when a portion 
of its surface becomes diseased beyond repair; 
when weighted down with the wickedness, crime 
and sin of the people inhabiting it, that portion 
gives way under the load and through great cata- 
clysms sinks down to be covered by the salt brine 
of the sea, where the putrefaction of the mass is 
completed. Putrefaction is a form of digestion or 
disintegration which breaks up old forms or bodies 
and liberates their life-essences. These essences 
being sublimed by the heat of the putrefaction rise 
up and certain of them combine with the various 
salts in solution and are thus preserved. Others 
in passing up through the brine are purified ere 
they pass into the regions above. As these purified 
essences rise from the sea certain of them are swept 
inward over the land where they are assimilated by 
both vegetable and animal life, including man. In 
this way all the advances in intelligence, as well as 
all the advances in art, science and invention 
brought forth for the benefit of mankind — the so- 
called "lost arts" — are still preserved in the thought 
aura of the locality. When subsequent Races reach 
a corresponding stage of mental development they 
are able to respond to the purified thought-forms of 
the former civilizations and reproduce them as ap- 
parently "new" ideas or inventions. 

It is often noted that new ideas, new thoughts and 



388 The Voice of his 

tendencies seem to sweep over communities in waves. 
They are indeed waves in the mental and even physical 
atmosphere, sweeping in from the sea, invigorating, 
stimulating and advancing all forms of life. All 
essences not absorbed by vegetable and animal life 
or utilized by man, pass into the aura of the earth 
as a permanent acquisition or seed for the use of 
future Races. The modern aeroplane is but an imper- 
fect expression of the thought-forms left in the aura 
of the earth by the ancient Atlanteans, who had devel- 
oped aeronautics to a far higher degree than has yet 
been attained in this age. There is no so-called "lost 
art" but will in due time be recovered or "discovered" 
in the same way. For every thought and act of man 
is imprinted upon the Akashic Records and tends to 
reproduce itself through the brain of the reincarnated 
Soul who first produced it. And when so reproduced 
it tends to be further perfected or redeemed, for such 
is the Law of Eternal Progress. 

After the rise of the submerged land from be- 
neath the brine of the sea, the waters drain off or 
evaporate and the purifying process is continued in 
the resulting deserts. Following cyclic law, when 
the disintegration of old forms is completed and the 
combination of the lower essences with the salts 
of the sea is accomplished, the land thus freed from 
its magnetic burden of impurity slowly rises above 
the surface, the waters evaporating and leaving be- 
hind their accumulated salt to the further action of 
the sun and air. Thus are formed the vast tracts 
of land we call deserts. 

As in the body an excess of salt is injurious, so in 
the desert, where for ages no vegetable or animal 
life can exist. Yet in the fullness of time the 
salt is gradually disintegrated, sublimed or carried 



The Symbol of the Salt 389 

away by the action of the elements, and the land 
again becomes habitable. The Great Salt Lake in 
Utah, the desert of Sahara and the great plains of 
western United States are examples of different 
steps in this process. Thus, little by little, is the proph- 
ecy fulfilled : "The desert shall blossom as the rose." 
Man passes through the same stages of purifica- 
tion by salt as does the earth. His youth is fresh 
and pure, is filled with high ideals, beautiful 
thoughts, and vast energy. Gradually as he reaches 
his maturity his pure ideals become overlaid with 
selfishness, dissimulation, greed and impurity, and 
his life becomes weighted down with the weak- 
nesses, material desires, and impurities of the world. 
Then come the purifying cataclysms of sorrow and 
suffering in which all his boasted attainments dis- 
solve from under him and he sinks down under the 
brine poured out by the salt tears that flow from his 
eyes. Here, as in the ocean, the salt purifies the 
nature and preserves the essence of good in the ex- 
periences he passes through, building it into his aura 
for future use. The lessons of sorrow must be well 
learned or they will be repeated again and again 
until learned. After a period of desolation when all 
comfort fails — comparable to a lonely desert — the 
paralyzing effects of sorrow gradually lessen and 
pass away. Then the rose that is born of suffering 
and watered with tears puts forth its bud and begins 
to open its petals in the purified and freshened soil 
of his heart. 

Analyzed from the higher standpoint, a drop of 
sea water contains every constituent necessary to 
life, and the same constituents are found in the salt 
"Waters of Life" or tears. The well-known 
aphorism in Light on The Path is based upon the puri- 



390 The Voice of I sis 

fying action of salt. "Before the eyes can see they 
must be incapable of tears" does not mean that you 
must be cold or lacking in understanding and appre- 
ciation of the trials your brothers and sisters are 
undergoing, or that you must be lacking in sym- 
pathy ; for Jesus — the type of perfected man — wept in 
sympathy with the sisters at Lazarus' tomb, al- 
though possessing in its fullness the power to bring 
Lazarus forth with a word — but it does mean that 
there will come a period in your life when your pas- 
sions, emotions and thoughts will be sa mastered 
and purified by the action of the salt tears — which 
in your present stage of development are necessary 
— that there will be no further need of the tears, for 
the salt has done its work. As in a desert, where 
only after the salt has been absorbed can the roses 
bloom, so only after the purifying and cleansing has 
been accomplished in your life can the roses bloom 
in your heart and your eyes truly see. 

Many ceremonies are connected with the partak- 
ing of salt. In the Middle Ages the dish of salt was 
placed in the center of the long banquet-board and 
those who sat between the salt and the host were 
said to sit "above the salt." Only members of the 
family were permitted this honor; hence when a 
guest was seated above the salt he was accepted as 
a member of the family for the time being, and ac- 
corded all the privileges and honors due a son of the 
house. Those who sat "below the salt" were the 
squires, retainers and followers of the lord of the 
house and could rise above the salt only by valiant 
deeds. Among the Arabs to this day salt is held 
sacred. One with whom they have partaken of salt 
becomes their friend, and if by chance they partake 
of salt with an enemy the enmity must be forsworn. 



The Symbol of the Salt 391 

This ceremony is called "The Covenant of Salt" and 
is but another remnant of the ancient ceremony 
which symbolized the covenant between man and 
his Higher Self. Traces of this symbolic meaning 
are found in many religions, the Roman Catholics 
still using salt in the baptismal service. These cus- 
toms are remnants of the beautiful symbology taught 
the early Races by the Elder Brothers of Humanity, 
in which the symbolic purifying by the salt admitted 
the neophyte to spiritual Sonship. The self-conquer- 
ing purifying and cleansing which lifted the neophyte 
above the salt made it possible for him to enter the 
higher realms and become one with his Father-in- 
heaven. 

The first conscious step of the neophyte is a strong 
desire to purify his body, mind and life and preserve 
the divine attributes within his Soul. This step is 
symbolized by the effect of the salt. Each of you who 
is ready to make the Covenant of Salt with your 
Higher Self agrees to let your life be purified of all 
its faults both great and small through the action of 
salt tears, even though sorrow and suffering are nec- 
essary to accomplish this result. When you have been 
thoroughly salted and cleansed from earthly impurities 
then will you become clear crystal grains wherewith 
to salt the earth. Then indeed will the eyes be in- 
capable of tears and be able to see the things of the 
spirit ! However, this does not mean that you are to 
encourage mere emotionalism, or to look on the sor- 
rowful side of life. For just as in the desert an excess 
of salt kills out vegetation, so giving away to excessive 
weeping or emotion will make a desert of your heart 
and life and you will remain in that state until you 
have conquered. You will never gain the victory 
until, as in the desert, the salt has been absorbed, the 



392 The Voice of his 

soil of your heart enriched by experience, and your 
life has brought forth its roses. 

Jesus said to His initiated disciples: "Ye are the 
salt of the earth . . . have salt in yourselves 
and have peace one with another." As you start out 
to be the salt of the earth be not dismayed that you 
are such a tiny grain compared to the great world 
around you. Determine not to lose your savor. The 
little grain of salt stops not to consider if it can accom- 
plish its mission. It simply gives forth its innate 
qualities in perfect confidence, for if it has not lost 
its savor everything it contacts must be salted. And 
the more it gives the more it has to give, for its crystals 
grow and reproduce according to their saltness. Let 
the light of your purified life so shine before men that 
they shall recognize in you the element of purification. 
Earnestly determine that the salt shall not lose its 
savor, but that you will do your duty as a grain of 
salt to wipe out and purify the world's misconcep- 
tions. In your daily life, like grains of salt, radiate 
the spiritual force which you draw from The Christ 
and transmute the putrefying conditions in the thought 
of humanity into Love and Purity. 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

THOU SHALT NOT KILL. 

"Life runs its rounds of living, climbing up, 
From mote, and gnat, and worm, reptile and fish, 
Bird and snagged beast, man, demon, deva, God, 

if one might save 

Man from his curse, the whole wide world should share 
The lightened horror of this ignorance 
Whose shadow is chill fear, and cruelty its bitter pastime. 
Light of Asia, Arnold, Book IV. p. 97. 

(Note: This lesson is intended to advocate neither 
meat-eating nor non-meat-eating, but to inculcate in 
all that tolerance which can see others follow lines 
of conduct differing from their own without condemna- 
tion or a feeling of superiority.) 

The command "Thou shalt not kill," is plain and 
distinct, with no modifying conditions, yet it is given 
upon the same authority as that which, in the vision 
of Peter, said : "Rise, Peter ; kill and eat." * Although 
the vision of Peter was primarily to teach him that 
even though a Jew he should call no man unclean, 
nevertheless the Voice of God commanded him to kill, 
and he had to learn his lesson through his willingness 
to do so even though against his race prejudice. 

We have explained to our pupils something of the 
great law of the One Life, or the Great Creative Prin- 
ciple sent into chaos to evolve through all forms and 
bring the world-stuff left over from a previous world- 
period to perfection through physical and spiritual 
evolution. We have tried to picture this Great Prin- 
ciple as a stream of life-force animating and evolving 
everything through which it passes. As this is the force 
back of all evolution, an emanation from the Absolute 

* Acts, x, 13. 



394 The Voice of his 

(which is all life), there can be no such thing as "kill- 
ing" in the sense of annihilating this stream of life- 
force. But since the above command is given, and not 
only in one sacred scripture but in many, it must have 
an important inner meaning as well as an outer. 

The only sense in which man can kill is to separate 
any form of life from this stream of life-force, or to 
dam it up or refuse to permit it to manifest. A good 
example of such killing is given by the yogis, 
Brahmacharis and Bhikshus — the so-called holy men- 
dicants of India — described in The Light of Asia: 
"Some day and night had stood with lifted arms, till — 
drained of blood and withered by disease — their slowly 
wasting joints and stiffened limbs jutted from sapless 
shoulders like dead forks from forest trunks." * Such 
practices prevent the One Life from manifesting 
through certain parts of the body, hence such parts 
may be said to be killed. Another form of killing is 
found in the various kinds of mental torture which, 
even in this so-called enlightened and Christian coun- 
try, are assiduously followed by many who are earn- 
estly seeking spiritual enlightenment. While we are 
wont to look upon all forms of bodily torture as hor- 
rible and revolting, many hold that Soul-torture is the 
only path to perfection. Such think they must make 
life as hard and unhappy, both for themselves and for 
others, as it is possible ; that they must refuse to eat 
that which they enjoy; must starve their bodies or 
must scourge their mind and conscience. These are 
also forms of killing, because they dam up and refuse 
to permit the life-force to manifest in and through 
these conditions. Just as mind and Spirit are more 
important than body, so is mental and spiritual torture 
far more harmful and degenerating than any merely 

l Book the Fifth, p. 116. 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 395 

bodily torture that can be conceived of. And it has 
exactly the same effect, namely, to separate the tor- 
tured parts from the stream of life-giving creative 
force, which is The Christ or the Creative Principle of 
the Godhead. 

The one fact which we would that we could proclaim 
in words of fire that all the world might comprehend is 
"God is Love/' and love is life and growth and joy and 
peace and immortality. The only bar to evolution is to 
kill, to separate either body, mind or heart from God- 
Love, no matter what mistaken teaching brings this 
about. Just as long as the idea prevails that to be 
joyous and happy in life is to be far from God; just 
as long as love is considered a clandestine fruit, some- 
thing forbidden, to be eaten only in secret and bit- 
terly repented of later on; that to gain the pleasant 
things of life you must close the door on God and turn 
aside the stream of the vital Christ-life from you, just 
so long will this world be the hell it is today. The 
only way to cleanse the Augean stables of life's mis- 
eries is once more to turn the living waters of the 
rivers Alpheus and Peneus into their old and origin- 
ally intended channels and let the streams of love and 
life and immortality flow into and through all. This 
was one of the fabled labors of Hercules, who sym- 
bolizes strength or- power to accomplish, that God- 
given power by which mankind can find its birthright. 
Through the strength gained by accepting and believ- 
ing that God has sent His Son — The Christ-principle, 
the creative aspect of the Absolute — into chaos be- 
cause His force was all that was needed to awaken 
seemingly dead matter into life 1 that it might evolve 
toward perfection, we open the flood gates and, like 
Hercules, turn this river of force into the stables that 

l See Chapter XXIV. 



396 The Voice of Isis 

are filled with man's animal passions and emotions and 
the stables are cleansed. "Thou shalt not kill" means 
that you shall in no way dam up or cut off the life- 
force. 

But the question Peter had to face was : Has man 
the right to destroy any lower form of life, either for 
food, self-preservation or for purposes of hygiene? 
The Hindus have carried the literal interpretation of 
the command "Thou shalt not kill" to its extreme 
limits, practically sacrificing human life in preference 
to that of insects and other noxious and pestiferous 
forms of life. Poisonous snakes, which the Hindus 
refuse to kill, cause the death of thousands of human 
beings annually ; yet it is a common sight to see these 
same Hindus treat their domestic animals with such 
cruelty that a European can scarce endure the sight 
of their suffering. It is known that the plague, which 
so frequently devastates that country with its toll of 
millions of lives, is transmitted by rats and other ro- 
dents and is largely made possible by the unclean con- 
ditions which permit fleas, lice and other bloodsucking 
parasites — infesting indiscriminately the dead and 
the living — to flourish undisturbed ; that fatal fevers 
are transmitted by mosquitoes, and that many other 
scourges of mankind can be traced to similar sources, 
and yet there are serious and earnest seekers after 
truth who ask if it is right to destroy such forms of 
life. There are many in this country who say they 
have no right to kill the disease-transmitting house- 
fly but who will carefully exclude it from their dwell- 
ings without a thought of the suffering poor who can- 
not afford screens or who are too ignorant to protect 
their children from flies. Hence disease and death is 
spread among the poor by the very flies the well-mean- 
ing students have excluded from their own homes. 

As to the killing of the dumb beasts your brothers, 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 397 

the literal view of not killing animals for food may be 
a helpful step at a certain stage of spiritual growth, 
but later on it is well to consider a wider view of crea- 
tion and the inter-dependence of all kingdoms ; for 
using vegetables for food is just as much taking life 
as to use animals for food. Man, being a step above 
the lower kingdoms, owes love and helpfulness to all. 

The matter of what kind of food you place in your 
stomach, as long as it is wholesome and satisfying, is 
of so little importance to spiritual growth that we give 
it little special attention, leaving such matters of per- 
sonal preference to the common-sense of each pupil. 
Each one, however, is responsible for the condition of 
all his bodies and must give them due attention, the 
attention necessary to keep any high-bred animal, of 
which high-grade work is expected, in good physical 
condition. 

The one essential thing is to have a strong mind in 
a strong body, to live in such a way that no part of 
body, mind or Soul is shut off from the stream of 
Divine Life. "Will ye, for love of soul, so loathe your 
flesh, so scourge and maim it, that it shall not serve to 
bear the spirit on, searching for home ?" * In fact, 
"Thou shalt not kill" any cell, molecule or atom in 
any of your bodies. Hence, we do not presume to lay 
down set rules as to diet ; for spiritual growth is not a 
matter of what goes into the stomach — else those 
Races which have been vegetarians for ages would be 
spiritual masters long ere this — but of the devotion 
with which you live out the ideals of your heart. "Not 
that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man ; but 
that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a 
man." 2 If your ideal is not to eat meat, and if you 
find your body and mind thrive and you have gained 

1 Light of Asia, Arnold, Book V, p. 120. 
*St. Matthew, XV, 11. 



398 The Voice of Isis 

more strength, courage, vital force and mental power 
without it, then live out that ideal and find out by the 
results in your life if it be best for you. Study your 
fellowmen and see if a purely vegetarian diet has 
brought to its devotees greater health of body, vigor 
of mind, breadth of Soul, love, tolerance and com- 
passion. 

One of the objections frequently brought against 
meat-eating is the supposition that by eating flesh man 
will take on the passions of the animal. There are two 
points to be considered in this theory. All occult 
students know that the desire-body is Kama or the 
animal-soul, and that it leaves the body at the moment 
of death, hence could not in any way be taken on by 
eating the flesh from which it has withdrawn. The 
second point is the claim commonly made by vegeta- 
rians that by abstaining from meat their animal pas- 
sions are lessened. The fact is that this result is at- 
tained simply because, by a decrease in their stamina 
and virility, their passions are temporarily masked. A 
perfect man must be one with all his forces in full 
vigor, but under perfect control. To weaken his pow- 
ers to such an extent that they no longer require con- 
trol is taking a step backward rather than forward, 
for such weakened forces are only dormant, not mas- 
tered, and in some life will assert themselves with all 
their accumulated power and demand expression. 
Persons who have thus weakened their powers are 
very apt to think they have no passions, hence permit 
a feeling of superiority to grow up in them. Some 
time in their evolution, however, they must experi- 
ence the full strength of all animal desires ere they 
can even begin really to conquer. But this does not 
mean, as taught by some schools, that it is well delib- 
erately to arouse the passions for the sake of controll- 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 399 

ing them. It does mean that each must be in full pos- 
session of all his powers and learn to master them 
and make them his servants; for they are stepping- 
stones by which he must climb. 

We also hear much to the effect that all Masters 
and Adepts were vegetarians, while the truth is that 
only those who have reached Mastery from non- 
meat-eating races were vegetarians. Right here 
comes in a fact we have so often reiterated, namely, 
that to reach Mastery each Soul must live up to the 
light and the conceptions of Truth as revealed to him 
in his own religion, nation and environment. The 
truth is that many, many Souls have reached Mastery 
through races that did eat meat, such as the Egyp- 
tians, the Norsemen, Celts, etc., and especially those 
who, living in a cold climate, subsisted almost entirely 
on meat and yet reached Mastery; all of whom are 
largely represented among the Masters of the Great 
White Lodge. Hence, the importance of a vegetarian 
diet in attaining Mastery cannot be very great; for 
we cannot believe that the Elohim, having created a 
planet with so many differing climates, necessitating 
such a variety of diets, would shut out from attaining 
ultimate perfection all who were placed in parts of 
that planet where climatic conditions made animal 
food a necessity for life and warmth. 

It is the thought-force put into the subject that is 
the great factor, namely, what thoughts you hold, to 
what you constantly direct your mind. If you think 
continually of what you are not to eat and how you 
are to manage without it you are putting quite as much 
creative thought-force upon your food as is the glut- 
ton who thinks only of what he is to eat. In both 
cases the subject of food is taken out of its proper 
place — as anything wholesome that will properly 



400 The Voice of Isis 

nourish the body — and is given undue prominence, 
even worshiped, making those who worship it slaves 
to their stomachs, instead of looking upon food as the 
mere fuel that runs the engine. The mind cannot run 
constantly upon food and at the same time meditate 
on spiritual things or be filled with loving thoughts 
for the help of humanity. Instead you are apt to 
divide the world into meat-eaters and non-meat-eaters. 

As good must evolve out of all evil, so must we gain 
wisdom to handle this problem, and by our thought- 
force help make it possible for the Masters of Wisdom 
to use every thing and condition, no matter how ap- 
parently evil, to bring about ultimate good. 

There is no such thing as death, merely various 
changes in form in the manifestation of the One Life. 

Man is the result of the normal development of all 
the lower kingdoms ; his body contains all the ele- 
ments — mineral, vegetable and animal. This fact 
alone shows that man has absorbed and transmuted 
all the lower kingdoms and has thereby raised them 
into a hig-her expression of the One Life. Hence, 
the atoms of the mineral, vegetable and animal king- 
doms which have been swallowed up by man have 
thereby reached the fullness of life expression, just 
as man must be swallowed up — and from one view- 
point be killed and absorbed — in the spiritualized Being 
who shall be more than man. The mineral is "killed 
and eaten" or absorbed from the earth, and its form 
of life expression destroyed that the vegetable may 
live ; the vegetable is "killed and eaten" or absorbed 
that the animal may live, and the animal gives up its 
life for man just as the lower personal man gives up 
his life for the Spiritual Man. 

Every form of life is born into the environment 
where its natural prey (food) is found. If you reject 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 401 

the teaching of the evolution of the One Life through 
the sacrifice of lower forms, then in despair you must 
agree with the dictum of certain scientists who declare 
the world to be but a monstrous charnel house. In 
each instance, however, it is the mere physical ex- 
pression of the One Life that is altered, for it is not 
cut off from the stream of life-force, but is brought 
into contact with a higher and more perfect expression 
of that force and hence cannot be said to be "killed." 
It is much as though a plant, having outgrown a con- 
fining pot, was transplanted into a larger one where 
it would have greater freedom and could express a 
greater amount of the life-force ; or it is like a tadpole 
absorbed and transmuted into a frog. This is the true 
meaning of the Mosaic law, "a life for a life" — ex- 
changing a lower form of life for a higher — so com- 
monly misinterpreted in favor of capital punishment. 
Jesus expressed the same truth when He said : "Except 
a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth 
alone ; but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." x For 
the seed must be "killed," or give up its form of life 
and be absorbed and transmuted ere the higher form 
of expression can evolve. 

This is the scheme of evolution as it would be if 
there were no sin and no disobedience to the Law. If 
love prevailed evolution would be but one continued 
sacrifice of the lower form of the One Life to the next 
higher, that the more highly evolved form might ex- 
press to a greater degree the One Life. But man's 
disobedience to his divine guidance has brought cru- 
elty and suffering into the world so that all creation 
"groaneth and travaileth together." That is, all crea- 
tion — whose end and aim is to give birth to and to 
bring to perfection spiritual Beings — now brings 
forth in pain and anguish where it should bring forth 

T?T John, XII, 24. 



402 The Voice of Isis 

in joy and thanksgiving. Now everything preys upon 
something instead of yielding itself a glad sacrifice to 
the next higher form. If no life were taken in cru- 
elty it would naturally and without pain give up its 
life-current that it might be turned into a higher and 
more advanced channel of expression. If this did not 
take place evolution would cease, and the life-wave 
could never lift the mineral into the vegetable king- 
dom, nor the vegetable into the animal, the animal into 
the human or the human into the Divine. 

Through man's selfishness and unbrotherliness 
there is enmity and lack of understanding between 
man and all the lower kingdoms, which can only be 
remedied by love and wisdom. For instance, if meat- 
eating were abolished would that overcome enmity 
and cruelty? Such changes must come from a change 
in man's attitude toward life, from within, from the 
heart, and not from any outward act or the mere 
abstaining from an act. 

At present man is swayed mainly through his love of 
gain. As long as the flesh of animals has a commercial 
value and commands a higher price when the animal is 
improved in quality, well cared for, well fed and shel- 
tered, man will go on improving conditions for the ani- 
mal and thus perfecting and advancing it in evolution 
far more rapidly than ages of wild life could accom- 
plish, even though he does this merely because he finds 
it to his financial advantage. All these factors are util- 
ized by the Masters of Wisdom who are guiding evo- 
lution, to give a decided impetus upward to the evo- 
lution of the animal kingdom ; for the animals must 
reach a state of perfection as animals ere the wave of 
evolution can sweep them into the next higher king- 
dom. On the other hand, if animals had no commer- 
cial value they would receive no attention from man, 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 403 

would be allowed to run wild, would be cruelly hunted 
for sport, killed off to rid the fields of them, and many 
starved or frozen in winter. Thus it would take many, 
many more lives as animals ere they learned all the 
lessons and reached perfection as animals ; for even 
the animals must learn the .lesson of love and broth- 
erhood with man and all kingdoms ere they are done 
with their experience as animals, and this lesson they 
must learn from man. The mere killing, which is 
but a momentary pang, does not cause a thousandth 
part of the suffering experienced in a wild and neg- 
lected state — the slow dying of starvation, the being 
torn to pieces by other animals or put to death by 
their own kind, as happens to the old, the sick or dis- 
abled among most animals. 

Another objection to meat-eating is the brutalizing 
effect the killing has upon the butchers. This is in- 
deed a serious question, but those who are butchers 
today are also evolving and are today a step above 
their former incarnations in which they may have 
been human butchers, i. e., the executioners, inquisi- 
tors or the hired assassins so common in former ages. 
By the time there are no more Souls who need such 
an environment in which to learn their lessons and 
evolve there will be no more need of butchers, for the 
Great Law never places a Soul in an environment that 
is not needed for its further evolution. 

In protecting himself against mosquitoes, flies and 
other noxious insects, man has the right to sacrifice 
their form of life. For all lower forms of life which 
prey upon or work injury to man are the result of 
man's abuse of the life-force, hence he has the right 
to make that life-force manifest through other forms 
which will be helpful to the Race. Therefore, when 
you destroy these lower forms hold the thought that 
their life-force shall manifest through forms that shall 



404 The Voice of Isis 

be helpful and not inimical to man. It is not true 
brotherhood merely to drive them away from you to 
prey upon your less fortunate brothers and sisters. 
At no point in evolution, however, has any form of 
life the right to take the life of its kind, for by so doing 
it could not fulfill the Law of Compensation by raising 
it to a higher stage of evolution. Nor would any form 
do this did not man send forth murderous thoughts 
and emanations. This applies even to the poisonous 
weed which chokes out the life of the flower beside it; 
to the forms of life which devour their young and 
their kind; for in such cases, instead of being raised 
to a higher step they have to repeat the same step 
again. But it does not apply to those forms of fish 
and animal life which prey upon less evolved forms 
of their own kind. 

The whole key-note of the universe is love and as 
long as man sends out the reverse of love, or 
inharmony, death instead of life must result. How- 
ever, the plea of advancing evolution cannot be 
used to excuse or palliate the taking of life for sport 
or vanity. Man has no right to assume the responsi- 
bility of changing a form of life unless conditions have 
proved that the sacrifice of the lower form is necessary 
for the life or best good of a higher form — mankind. 
To kill animals for amusement or to kill birds for their 
plumage that it may add to the vanity of woman, or 
to foster that state of mind which cannot see any- 
thing beautiful or uplifting in the song of birds or 
the gambols of a young animal, the sight of which 
only arouses the desire to kill, is not only pushing man 
back to the level of wild beasts, but, because it is not 
transmuted into a higher form, is retarding the evo- 
lution of the stream of life-force, and is spreading 
enmity toward man among the lower kingdoms. It 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 405 

also dams up love and compassion in his heart and pre- 
vents his spiritual evolution. This is killing in the full 
sense of the term. 

Man is a free-will agent and can choose his own 
path. But certain it is that ultimately love and har- 
mony must prevail else man fails to do his duty to the 
lower kingdoms by failing to put the imprint of love 
and brotherhood upon them, for all forms must evolve 
together. Man is responsible for the lower kingdoms 
and must do his duty by them and help them to take 
their next step in evolution, for he has reached a point 
in evolution where he must consciously become a co- 
worker with the forces of evolution, must recognize, 
correlate with and begin to use the great, creative 
Christ Principle — which is the one Way, the Truth 
and the Life — by which alone evolution can reach its 
ultimate perfection. If man fails to do this he stops his 
own evolution, for he cannot expect to receive from 
the kingdoms above him that love and help which he 
withholds from the kingdoms below him. 

Man will never lay down the task of aiding the 
lower kingdoms until all are lifted up and redeemed 
through Divine Love. 

There is always an inner or esoteric truth beneath 
every phase of life, for all things work together for 
good, even man's mistakes being utilized. "All steps 
are necessary to make up the ladder. The vices of 
men become steps in the ladder, one by one, as they 
are surmounted." x Wisdom seeks deep into the mys- 
teries of being for the germ of good beneath every 
outward seeming ere condemning anything. "Seek 
it (the Way) by testing all experience, by utilizing the 
senses, in order to understand the growth and mean- 
ing of individuality, and the beauty and obscurity of 

1 Light on the Path, Part I, Rule 20. 



406 The Voice of Isis 

those other divine fragments which are struggling 
side by side with you, and form the race to which you 
belong." 

Do not condemn anything but cruelty, impurity 
and want of tolerance and brotherly love. Cul- 
tivate love and tolerance for all your brethren and 
avoid the thought that your way, or your view is su- 
perior or is in any way better than another's, except 
for yourself. Above all avoid the spiritual pride that 
results from the thought that because you do or do 
not eat meat, fletcherize your food, eat raw foods, 
follow a particular dietary or bathe in a particular 
fashion, you are holier than your brothers who do 
differently. For there is no one thing that holds back 
Soul-growth more, that is more subtle, or is harder 
to overcome, than spiritual pride. 

"Thou shalt not kill" means then, that thou shalt 
not do anything to retard evolution on any plane, to 
shut away any portion of the universe from the uni- 
versal love-force, to foster separateness or to retard 
the spread of brotherhood, harmony and unity on all 
planes. In Light on the Path we read : "Each man 
is to himself absolutely the way, the truth and the 
life," and the Master Jesus, speaking of The Christ 
within, said: "I am the way, the truth, and the life." 
These two texts have literally the same meaning. The 
letter "I" is formed by a straight line which geomet- 
rically represents The Christ-principle descending 
into matter, hence it is this life-giving force or Prin- 
ciple which is "the way, the truth and the life." But 
as each one manifests this in his life he can individu- 
ally become that "I;" meaning, however, not the 
human, personal self, which is matter, but the animat- 
ing Principle of Deity manifesting through him. 
Therefore, from this standpoint, each one must take 
upon himseK the responsibility of becoming "the way, 



Thou Shalt Not Kill 407 

the truth, and the life," not only for himself, but, by 
his life, his influence and example — because he stands 
upon what is at present the crest of the wave of evo- 
lution on this planet — for all the kingdoms below him, 
as well as for all his fellow beings. For the Way 
and the Truth is Unity or the One Life. "As above, 
so below." 

Therefore, as to diet we lay down no set rules ; wc 
only state principles. Let each pupil take the matter 
of meat-eating into the Silence and find out the best 
way for him to attain the above mentioned end. And 
we feel sure that after he has wrestled with the ques- 
tion conscientiously, and has found the many differ- 
ences and the many apparent contradictions which 
must be reconciled and blended ere this oneness with 
all can be even approximately attained, there will grow 
up in his heart such a tolerance and patience with all 
his fellow students — whom he can plainly see are seek- 
ing the same end — that there will be no condemnation 
possible. "Let not him that eateth despise him that 
eateth not ; and let not him which eateth not judge him 
that eateth." x The instant any Soul reaches this point, 
where he recognizes the unity of all, and the diversity 
of methods by which all are seeking unity, he can but 
reflect in his life and conversation the illuminating 
power of the divine Christ Love and will then become 
an avenue through which this creative life-stream must 
flow to all humanity. 

1 Romans, XIV, 3. 



CHAPTER XXXIII. 

PRAYER OF CONSECRATION. 

The following mantra are specially given by the 
Masters of Wisdom as a link to bind all disciples into 
one great unified body. You are requested to repeat 
them with us morning, noon and night, keeping in 
mind the ideas given in the explanation below, and 
trying to realize their meaning in your daily life. 

The power of prayers or mantra to harmonize the 
mind and body and bring about suitable conditions 
for spiritual communication has been recognized in 
all countries and all ages, "sound being the most 
potent and effectual magic agent, and the first of the 
keys which opens the door of communication between 
Mortals and Immortals." 1 "To pronounce a word is 
to evoke a thought, and make it present : the magnetic 
potency of human speech is the commencement of 
every manifestation in the Occult World." 2 

We, recognizing the omnipotent power 
of the Great Creative Force, do make 
most solemn covenant to present our 
whole selves, our bodies, our minds, our 
Souls, a living sacrifice to Tluze. 

We yield all personal desires unto the 
one Great Desire, to be used as instru- 
ments to create a Centre through which 
The Lodge can work. 

Recognizing the oneness of Thy All- 
pervading Force, we give back to Thee, 
for Thy use, all that zve possess, and by 

1 The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I, 502. 
•Ibid, Vol. I, 121. 



Prayer of Consecration 409 

the power of the Living Christ demand 
that all obstacles be removed, and Thy 
work be speedily established in perfect 
justice. 

These mantra, while apparently but affirmations, 
nevertheless contain the spirit of true prayer, for all 
prayer is but a recognition of the One Life, the great 
Universal Creative Force. This force is love in its 
highest conception, and it is with this conception of 
love, as being one with the creative energy of the 
Great Breath of Brahm, that we desire our students to 
identify themselves. 

It is also the force that is meant in the passage, "For 
God so loved the world that He gave His only begot- 
ten Son." Just as the physical sun sends its forces 
into the heart of the seed, and by breaking up its con- 
fining sheath or shell utterly transforms it and causes 
it to grow into a plant, a flower or a tree, so this force 
of Divine Love pours out its power upon the immortal 
seed within our hearts. It is the Son of God come to 
earth that "whosoever believeth in Him should not 
perish but have everlasting life." It is that which is 
created from the Father-Mother-principle and sent 
into the world to redeem it. 

A true conception of this great truth confronts 
every neophyte at the Threshold. He must recognize 
this force and correlate its inner meaning within his 
own heart. This is the step so often spoken of as 
"Know Thyself," or present yourself "a living sacri- 
fice," your bodies, mind and Soul, i. e., seek for and 
find this stream of divine creative energy — an un- 
broken thread binding and holding body, mind and 
Soul to the Son of the Father-Mother — for this force 
is the creative aspect of your Higher Self. Such a 



410 The Voice of his 

conception alone of the love principle can bring re- 
demption. 

Without this redemption, and a comprehension of 
what is meant by Divine Love, the student, no matter 
how much occult theory, fact or knowledge he may 
store up, will still wander in outer darkness and never 
find or recognize his Father's face. Once grasp this 
truth with Soul knowledge, not mere intellect, and 
you will find that you have hold of your Father's hand, 
and nothing can ever separate you from Him, for the 
Comforter has come who will abide with you forever. 

Thus will you find the key that unlocks all mys- 
teries, that overcomes sickness and conquers death, 
and that will ultimately place your feet upon the high- 
est mount of attainment. 

This is the center that each disciple must find within 
his own heart, yea, within his own body, that he may 
realize how this creative force 1 works within himself. 
Having found it, let him purify the center and sanctify 
it to the work of the Masters, and pour out its force 
into the Great Center which the Masters of Wisdom 
are forming upon the earth-plane. 

This is the only way to prepare for the coming: Ava- 
tar. All who use this force wisely, with an under- 
standing of its tremendous power and how it works 
in and through humanity, are doing their part to pre- 
pare a place for the Avatar to manifest. This force, 
verily, is God or the Devil, according to its use or 
misuse. 

SPECIAL CONCENTRATION HOURS. 

We request that all pupils who earnestly desire to 
co-operate in this Movement or who have the suc- 
cess of this Order at heart, to pause for a moment 
each day upon the stroke of * oon and send a vital 

1 Understand clearly that we arc not referring to the physical sex- 
fluid, but to the divine creative potency of The Christ-principle. 



Prayer of Consecration 411 

creative thought of love to this Center, that it may be 
perfected in purity and power to accomplish its great 
mission for humanity. This should not interfere with 
your daily activities, for you have only to turn mentally 
to this Center and say, "In the name of the Living 
Christ may the Heart Center of The Order of the 13 
be preserved as a pure channel through which Divine 
Love, Life and Wisdom may manifest. May increas- 
ing power be given it to accomplish its great work for 
humanity." 

When repeating this prayer realize that the Heart 
Center includes more than those personalities at the 
Center who are engaged in the work of the Order, for 
the Heart Center of every movement includes the 
heart-love of every member, no matter where they may 
be. Hence your loving thoughts directed toward help- 
ing the Order will form a magic chain uniting all true 
members in love. It will also create a vortex into 
which there will irresistibly be drawn the positive force 
of the Divine. 

Do not try to make the time coincide with the same 
hour in Los Angeles. Take the time of your own lo- 
cality. For as we have pupils in all parts of the world 
the repetition of this prayer at noon will make a con- 
tinuous stream of force pouring into the Center 
unceasingly. 

To come into close vital touch with this Order each 
pupil should set apart at least fifteen minutes (thirty if 
possible) every Sunday evening at 8:30, during which 
the effort should be made to correlate with the special 
meeting held at the Center at that time. 

At that time each should repeat, either aloud or 
mentally, the Prayer of Consecration and the Healing 
Prayer, and concentrate on coming to this Center 
in thought, realizing that at this time the Master is in 
the midst of His children; that His love includes all, 



412 The Voice of I sis 

no matter how distant ; that at this time especially He 
is gathering all together to bless them, and that the 
streams of love and healing power are going out over 
the lines of force which connect each pupil with this 
Center. Over these lines of force the pupils on their part 
should send their love and help and a strong will that 
this Movement shall lack for nothing (either spiritu- 
ally or materially) to make it a powerful factor on all 
planes to help humanity. 

While the helpful forces are sent out to all alike, 
nevertheless those who thus consciously correlate with 
them and who give of their substance — which includes 
their love and earnest desire to help on all planes — 
will receive in exact proportion to the earnestness 
and devotion they express, for, by their desire to be- 
come co-workers in this Movement for the upliftment 
of humanity, they are literally merging themselves into 
oneness with the streams of living force poured out by 
The Lodge through this Order; for their desires are 
creative and will bring forth after their kind. 

If any find it impossible to be alone at this time let 
them at least send us a strong thought of loving help, 
even if they are in the midst of a crowd. 

The Secretary would be glad to know of any experi- 
ences the pupils may have in correlating with the 
Center in this service. 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 

THE MEANING OF THE SYMBOL. 




flh'.lstera d' Christ ri«S Strwavb <f 

(Ik r^siiTtfs o<°<kxt 



(Ml 



The symbol of an Order is its standard or flag. It 
symbolizes both its source, its object and its policy and 
sets the standard by which it must be judged. Hence 
it is important that persons belonging to or coming 
in touch with any Order or Movement should under- 
stand something of the emblem by which it is known 
on the higher planes. 

THE SEAL. 

This Seal like all true symbols, has many shades 
of interpretation — all of which are included in the 
figure — and can be applied to various conditions. 
These shades of meaning are applications suitable to 
various conditions and circumstances rather than con- 
tradictions. We will take it, however, as the Seal of 
The Order of the 15 and endeavor to point out not 
only its meaning, but also how it can be made a posi- 
tive help to all who are striving to reach the goal of 
spiritual attainment over the Path marked out by this 
Order. 



414 The Voice of Isis 

The Seal consists of a double triangle inscribed in a 
circle, with an open Eye in the center and three five 
pointed stars in the spaces between the sides of the 
triangle and the circle. 

The circle represents Boundless Space and limitless 
Time in Eternity. It marks off the space in which 
creation takes place, or the circle formed by the down- 
pouring of the Great Creative Force, in this case the 
circumference within which this Order is working. It 
is much like the circle of light projected by a magic 
lantern, within which the pictures are to appear. In 
one sense it is the circle of the Zodiac (the pathway of 
our solar system) from the twelve Gates or Houses 
of which issues the radiant light of The Christos rep- 
resented as focused in the center of the Open Eye. In 
another sense the circle is the Ring Pass Not (the 
limit of the auric zone) which every true disciple 
should put around himself, and whose Gates (corre- 
sponding to the centers of the body) he must open and 
close at will to admit or exclude that which he chooses. 
Thus the All-seeing Eye (the Absolute) sheds its sev- 
en-fold creative rays within its creations. In the case 
of the Ring Pass Not the Eye is the Divine Flame or 
The Christ-force within each heart. In this Order it is 
the sacred altar upon which burns the Eternal Flame 
of spiritual light from whose illuminating rays ema- 
nate the inspired teachings. 

The Triangle symbolizes the Trinity, and is the uni- 
versal symbol of Deity, 1 the three aspects of the Logos, 
whether taken as the Father, Son and Holy Ghost of 
the Christians, the Osiris, Isis and Horus of the Egyp- 
tians or the more ancient Father — Mother — Son. The 
apex of the triangle represents the dual creative force 
of the Logos, separating into its positive and negative 

* The Secret Doctrine, Blavatsky, Vol. I, p. 138. 



The Meaning of the Symbol 415 

rays; the Mother (Isis, or the Holy Ghost), and the 
right hand line the Father (Osiris). These two send 
out their forces to form the base line, Horus, the Son, 
The Christ-principle poured forth and raining down 
upon the lower world, to manifest in all kingdoms as 
the Great Creative Principle which shall redeem them. 

As used in this seal, the Triangle is composed of 
two sets of lines, representing either the masculine and 
feminine forces or involution and evolution. The 
inner line, the feminine, also stands for Intuition and 
Love, while the outer line represents Intellect and 
Wisdom. The spaces between the lines represent the 
three planes of manifestation — physical, mental and 
spiritual. 

Just as it is impossible to draw an equilateral tri- 
angle within a circle without leaving three spaces, so 
is it impossible for the Trinity to express itself within 
the circle of manifestation without manifesting the 
three worlds. Hence these three spaces symbolize the 
three worlds or three states of consciousness. 

Within each of these three spaces there is a five- 
pointed star, representing man with his five senses 
and five extremities (hands, feet, head). The symbol 
represents man as existing upon the three planes of 
manifestation and using his five senses in each of the 
three states of consciousness. A man using his five 
senses on three planes of manifestation makes the 
number 15. Also 1+5=6, thus announcing through 
the symbol that this Order is a Sixth Race movement, 
and that only by teaching man to use his five senses 
on all three planes can he prepare for the great Sixth 
Race. As 6 is the number of The Christ (man 5 plus 
Divinity 1) it symbolizes that this movement is an- 
other attempt to bring the teachings of The Christ 
to humanity. In other words this symbol should in- 



416 The Voice of his 

spire man to stand erect, and with all his known fac- 
ulties illumined by the Light of Truth, fearlessly pene- 
trate into the mysteries of his being. 

THE MOTTO. 

The motto of the Order is Dare, Do, Keep Silent, 
hence this must be the measure of its work. These 
words being placed between the double lines of the 
triangle show how man can conquer the three planes 
of consciousness. He must Dare to penetrate into 
the deeper mysteries of life; Dare to follow the guid- 
ance of his Father-in-heaven and Dare to face himself 
and live up to his highest ideals without regard to the 
opinions of his friends or enemies. He must Do the 
will of his Higher Self and manifest it in his daily life. 
He must Do with all his heart the duty that his hands 
find to do, the duty that lies nearest, and Do unto oth- 
ers as he would they should do unto him. He should 
Keep Silent concerning the sacred experiences of his 
inner life when among those who cannot understand; 
should Keep Silent concerning his own attainments, 
also when tempted to criticize others. Keep Silent 
also has reference to that silent hush of the physical 
and mental activities that must come ere the higher 
centers can catch and transmit the vibrations from the 
higher planes. These words form the triple key that 
will unlock for man the doors of his inner conscious- 
ness and enable him to function on all planes and mas- 
ster all states of consciousness. 

Taking the seal in its entirety, it shows to an Initiate 
that this Order is put forth by The Lodge to help man, 
through the use of his five known senses on all planes, 
to unfold his higher (unknown) faculties and reach 
up to the Divine. Many students of the higher life 
are striving to unfold and use their sixth and sev- 
enth senses before they have learned to use their five 



The Meaning of the Symbol 



417 



known senses on all planes. If such a thing were pos- 
sible it would make a gap in their evolution which noth- 
ing could bridge, and they would sooner or later find 
themselves plunged into the depths of error. 

The whole, being inscribed in a circle representing 
limitless Time in Eternity, shows that the symbol is 
active within this cycle of manifestation; moreover 
that it is intended as a direct preparation for the Sixth 
Great Race. 



APPENDIX A. 

HOW TO FORM A STUDY CLASS. 

In the study of mysticism and occultism, in addition 
to the careful reading and meditation upon the ideals 
presented, it is helpful to have a number who are in- 
terested in the same teachings organize a class and 
study together. The union of the auras of a number of 
harmonized students creates a vortex into which a 
strong force of enlightenment on the subject studied 
is naturally drawn. 

Arrange to meet regularly at some convenient place, 
such as a member's home, in the evening if possible, 
as this permits both men and women to attend, and 
choose one of your number to read the lesson. Select 
a few pages of the book a week in advance of the 
meeting and have each member carefully study and 
meditate upon them during the week, making notes of 
the ideas that seem most important. 

Begin promptly at the hour designated. Open the 
meeting with a period of Silence in which you still 
your mind, turn the current of your thoughts from 
the affairs of daily life and concentrate them upon 
some harmonizing topic announced beforehand, such 
as harmony, peace, light, love, understanding, etc. 
Have the leader read a few lines from the lesson 
selected and all who feel so prompted comment 
thereon, especially giving the new ideas that may have 
come to them during their study. Invite interruptions 
and discussion. Any questions you cannot answer 
send to the Superintendent of Local Centers, who will 
submit them to the Teacher and explanations will be 



How to Form a Study Class 419 

returned as soon as possible. Keep a kindly but firm 
rein over all discussions, allowing plenty of latitude, so 
iong as it does not stray too far away from the subject. 
Studiously avoid arguments. One should state one's 
interpretation of the passage under discussion and let 
it rest there. It will be excellent training in clear 
thinking to formulate your opinion as definitely as 
possible. Do not try to convince others or impose your 
views upon them. Simply state your views and grant 
to others the same freedom of thought and expression 
which you desire for yourself. Above all be cheerful 
and goodnatured and let peace, harmony and love 
abound, for without these conditions the study will 
degenerate into mere intellectual discussions and the 
Voice of Intuition which you are seeking to cultivate 
will be drowned out. 

In this way meetings become intensely interesting 
and helpful, for the different view points brought out 
serve to make clear phases of the subject not always 
in the printed lesson. Thus one lesson will often 
extend over three or four meetings. Strive ever to 
bring out the heart or Christ side in all your discus- 
sions of the lesson, not permitting the intellectual to 
predominate. Seek for the loving help that is con- 
tained in each lesson and always conclude by pointing 
it out plainly so that all can see and carry it home 
with them. 

Let all the students strive continually to spread the 
Teachings wherever and whenever Wisdom inspires 
them, but do not seek to force them upon anyone. 
Have them invite their friends to the meetings, those 
to whom they are led to talk and who become inter- 
ested, but not to be anxious about their coming, leaving 
them free to follow the leadings of their own hearts. 



420 The Voice of I sis 

Try to send in monthly reports of the progress of 
your meetings and of the different members, always 
encouraging, however, personal correspondence direct 
with the Order when a student is confronted with a 
vital Soul problem. 

If a name is chosen for the class remember that 
names have occult powers and the class will have to 
demonstrate that it can live up to the name chosen. 

After the class has been working harmoniously for 
some time, if it is desired to expand it into a Local 
Center of the Order to carry on a more organized line 
of work, write to the Superintendent of Local Centers 
for further information. 



APPENDIX B. 

ANNOUNCEMENT. 

"Behold, I bring unto you good tidings of great joy." 

To all students of the higher life who truly desire 
to progress, and who wish the opportunity of coming 
into closer personal touch with those Masters of Wis- 
dom, who, through all ages, have been the Teachers, 
Guides and Elder Brothers of humanity, there comes 
the following message : 

In accordance with the geometrical design of the 
universe, a point in evolution is now reached when an 
advanced Order has been established upon the earth 
plane. This Order is not an organization in the gen- 
eral acceptation of the term, nor is it connected either 
zvith the outer or inner work of any other occult organ- 
ization now in existence on the physical-plane. It is a 
new unifying, Spiritual Movement put forth by those 
Great Intelligences who are the Guides and Teachers 
of humanity. According to its fundamental principles, 
only such earnest students can be admitted to full 
membership as have proven their devotion to human- 
ity, and have sent out their cry for further enlighten- 
ment and help. All such persons are welcomed into 
this Order, and such probationary lessons will be sent 
them, from time to time, as will afford them an oppor- 
tunity of coming into close fellowship and conscious 
communion with the Masters of Wisdom. Under- 
stand this point clearly: It will be only through your 
own individual effort, your attitude of Soul and" the 
character of your subsequent life that will enable you 
to place yourself in personal, conscious touch with the 
Masters. It depends upon no personality but your 
own. 



422 The Voice of his 

No vows or pledges are asked of Associate Students, 
for only those are eligible to full membership in this 
Order who have voluntarily given up their lives to 
the higher law, and have already vowed allegiance to 
their own Higher Self. But all who sincerely desire 
the help this Order offers are welcomed as Associate 
Students. 

The teachings of this Order will not conflict with 
any duties of life, or with membership in other organ- 
izations, or membership in any religious denomina- 
tion. 



APPENDIX C. 

SPECIAL INFORMATION. 

The Order of the 15 is but one name for a great 
Cosmic Order which has always existed and through 
which all Souls who have reached Mastery have passed 
on some plane at a certain stage of their evolution. 
It has been represented upon the earth-plane at cer- 
tain cyclic intervals in all ages and it has been known 
under various names. Its manifestation upon the 
earth-plane during the present cycle began on January 
1st, 1908, in Philadelphia, Pa., and in less than three 
years it encircled the globe, having pupils — including 
Christian and Buddhistic missionaries — in China, 
Japan, India and the heart of Africa, as well as in 
almost every civilized country of the globe. 

THE ORDER OF THE 15. 

The Order of the 15 is a non-sectarian move- 
ment for the promulgation of Christian Mysticism. It 
is a response to the heart-hunger of humanity for a 
clearer understanding of the laws of The Christ-life. 
It is not put forth to form a new sect or cult, to further 
divide up and separate humanity, or to form another 
pigeonhole in which to isolate a few followers, nor 
does it come to secure a following for any human 
leader or personality. It is an impersonal and uni- 
versal unifying, Spiritual Movement, without creed, 
dogma, rules or pledges. Instead of emphasizing 
the differences between its teachings and all others, it 
strives to establish a platform so universal that its 
pupils can find in it some one thing to which they 
can agree, even though that one thing be not the same 
for all — and thus become a link to join the best efforts 



424 The Voice of his 

of all into one great universal effort to make Brother- 
hood manifest on earth. For true Brotherhood does 
not mean all thinking alike, but each recognizing 
Truth wherever found and demonstrating love and 
tolerance toward those who find a different aspect of 
Truth more helpful. 

This Order does not ask its pupils to leave any- 
church, society or organization in which they feel they 
can do their best work for humanity. It but seeks 
to help all to understand the workings of the great 
fundamental Law of Love, and thus enable them to 
do their own work the better, in their own way and 
place. It asks no one to subordinate his individuality 
or to follow any leader, but leaves all free to follow 
the Truth as revealed to them. It does not require 
that any of its teachings be accepted by its students 
because some authority says they are true, for unless 
a teaching appeals to the heart and rings true to a Soul 
it is not true to that Soul. Truth is not an abstract 
principle. It is that which remains as pure gold after 
passing through the fires of daily living and testing. 
Hence, no authority is enforced, except the authority 
of that Voice within each heart which recognizes and 
witnesses to Truth wherever found. 

ORGANIZATIONS. 

All organizations and movements which receive help 
from the Masters of Wisdom have their own particular 
work to do. Whether they have succeeded in the 
task set before them, or whether they have failed, is 
clearly shown by their results, and the same rule must 
be applied to the work of this Order. But many stu- 
dents have outgrown organizations, having found 
them too narrow and their necessary limitations too 
binding. This is but a natural feature of growth and 



Special Information 425 

again proves the Great law, "As above, so below;" 
just as the seed, when first planted, is confined in a 
protective sheath from which, in the process of 
growth, it will burst forth. Hence, an avenue of in- 
struction and help has been put forth that is not an 
organization and which is not limited in its activities. 
This movement is not an organization because it 
has no constitution or by-laws, no officers (except the 
Secretary), requires no pledges and no dues and does 
not restrict a student's activity in any society or or- 
ganization. Therefore it is not antagonistic to, or a 
rival of, any existing organization that is helping hu- 
manity, but permits perfect freedom. It holds out the 
hand of Brotherhood to each and gives to all 
an opportunity to prove the ideals of Brotherhood 
and tolerance which they profess. 

AS TO OTHER MOVEMENTS. 

Although we emphasized our relation to organiza- 
tions in the beginning by placing the statement in 
italics, yet it is overlooked by many. Therefore we 
will restate our position more fully herewith, so that 
in the future there may be no question as to the sig- 
nificance of this Movement and its relation to all 
others. 

We can but reiterate that while we are not con- 
nected, in any way, with the outer or inner zvorkings 
of any other organization now on the earth-plane, 
nevertheless we stand for Truth wherever found, our 
motto being, "By their fruits ye shall know them." 

Under no circumstances do we criticise any. If an 
organization, society or movement has helped one 
Soul to take one step upon the Path to Mastery it has 
not wrought in vain. 

"Whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these 
little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a 



426 The Voice of I sis 

disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose 
his reward ! . . . Inasmuch as ye have done it 
unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have 
done it unto me." 

The fact that a teaching attracts and helps you is 
evidence that it contains the lessons needed by you 
for the step you are taking. The fact that a move- 
ment no longer appeals to you, no matter how helpful 
it may be to others, is evidence either that your Soul 
has learned the lessons that movement had for you — 
even though not mastered intellectually — or that the 
movement, no matter how beautifully conceived and 
launched, has become tainted with something that is 
not helpful, or is perhaps distinctly injurious to your 
physical, mental, moral or spiritual growth. Hence, 
to remain connected with an organization to which 
you no longer feel drawn, or which you have out- 
grown, is as detrimental to your Soul-growth as it 
would be for a flower to remain in a pot which had 
become too small for it or whose soil had become ex- 
hausted or contaminated. No vows given to any 
earthly organization can bind a Soul which, through 
natural growth, has evolved beyond them. 

Each movement that aims to help humanity has its 
own place and its own work. Colored blocks are 
necessary in the kindergarten, primers for children, 
text-books for the training of the mind in school and 
college; but when the mind has been trained it must 
then put that training to use in a practical way: in 
business, under the head of the firm or manager; in 
art, under a great teacher; in spiritual things, under 
a Master of Wisdom. But remember that, because 
you are no longer interested in the colored blocks or 
primers you once thought so beautiful, you are not to 
despise the children who still cling to them, or find 



Special Information 427 

fault with the teachers of the a-b-c's. All have their 
place, and the children will grow away from the 
blocks when they have learned their lessons, just as 
you have grown. And the proof that you have out- 
grown earthly organizations will be the love and toler- 
ance with which you treat all your brothers and sis- 
ters who still feel the need of such methods. To rail 
at organizations, especially one which has helped you 
to reach your present state, and those who work in 
them, is proof that you still need their discipline. 
Every uplifting movement or teaching has its place 
and has for followers those who need its lessons. 

AIMS OF THIS MOVEMENT. 

One of the chief objects of this Movement is to 
correlate advanced philosophical teachings with the 
orthodox Christian teachings; to form a neutral 
ground where both can meet and recognize Truth, 
and to reach the great mass of people who will not 
join organizations or occult societies of any kind. On 
this account we may disappoint many intellectual stu- 
dents, for our language will purposely be made sim- 
ple, and the great truths which we set forth will be so 
stated as to appeal to minds schooled in Western 
religious thought. Our great object is to enable all 
sections of spiritual seekers — New Thought, Spirit- 
ualism, Theosophy, Christianity, in fact all lovers of 
Truth — to draw together at the heart center. This 
is a necessary preparation for the near advent of the 
great Spiritual Teacher for the Western world who is 
soon to appear, the Avatar. The good news of His 
quick coming must be given "unto all people," not 
merely to a few intellectual thinkers. All schools of 
spiritual thought need this preparation. 

The great psychic awakening now sweeping over 
the land has brought many students to the point where 



428 The Voice of I sis 

their inner faculties are unfolding. This is a point of 
great danger, for here the two paths — the Right 
Hand and the Left Hand — diverge. This Order may 
be called a wayside House of Rest, placed at the 
point of divergence of the paths, at whose door every 
pilgrim who knocks finds welcome, and within rest, 
sympathy, understanding and encouragement, also a 
guide to lead him safely past the many dangers and 
pitfalls that surround the entrance to the Right Hand 
Path. This is a personal work which could not be 
accomplished by any organization limited by set rules. 
While the teachings of this Order are those of the 
Wisdom Religion, they are not theosophic in the sense 
of being put forth by any of the numerous societies 
promulgating such teachings, for they deal with the 
Christian Bible quite as much as with Eastern 
teachings. 

One object of these teachings is to bring to the at- 
tention of the world, as simply as possible, the Pearls 
of Wisdom in the teachings of the Master Jesus — 
pearls that have been overlaid with wordy misconcep- 
tions so long as to be almost unrecognisable. 

As all religions, sects and creeds contain at least a 
germ of Truth, our aim is to help each one to find 
that germ in his own teachings, and to purify and 
develop it into the Tree of Life in his own garden. 
We thus help them to purify their conception of Truth 
as expressed in their own religion. 

There is a real necessity for the various presenta- 
tions of Truth as given to the world; for just as the 
climate, flora and fauna of a country, and the lan- 
guage and customs of its people vary in different 
parts of the world, so must Truth garb itself in habili- 
ments suited to the modes of thought of the people 
to whom it is given. There is a deep, occult reason 



Special Information 429 

underlying this law, and St. Paul recognized it when 
he said, "Be ye all things unto all men." There comes 
a time, however, in all organized bodies giving out 
spiritual teachings when some student will advance as 
far or farther than the leaders of the organization. 
And since it is only natural for such leaders to assume 
that they are more advanced than any of their stu- 
dents, inharmony and dissatisfaction or even seces- 
sion result. 

In the development of all students a point is reached 
where they need the advanced, personal instruction, 
not of any leaders — who are themselves but students — 
but of One who has at His command all knowl- 
edge and all wisdom, i. e., a Master of Wisdom. 1 
It is in answer to this personal need that The Lodge 
of Masters has put forth The Order of the 15 at this 
time. It comes as a direct response to the prayers of 
many, many hearts for more light, love, sympathy 
and personal guidance in the problems of their spir- 
itual life. 

As this continent is to be the home of a new Race 
which will ultimately perfect itself by the survival and 
interblending of the fittest of all the races now exist- 
ing, so must its religious thought be blended and puri- 
fied that it may emerge as a pure ray which has 
gathered into itself the force from all its sub-rays. 

The Order of the 15 is put forth in an effort to 
awaken The Christ-love in the hearts of men, rather 
than to cater to the intellect or the desire for psychic 
powers; for only those who can correlate with The 
Christ-power can be gathered together to form a nu- 
cleus in which this Power can be individualized on 
earth. The aim of this Movement is especially to help 

1 It is understood, of course, that the Secretary does not answer 
the letters or compose the teachings. He is merely the Secretary in the 
•rdinary sense of the word. 



430 The Voice of his 

all Christian people to find the deep, underlying, vital 
truths common to all religions in their own, and thus 
truly, and in the only way possible, prepare for an 
Universal Brotherhood on earth in which each Soul 
shall find the same vital truths spoken in his own 
language, i. e., couched and taught in terms of the 
religion in which he was born. 1 

FINANCIAL OBLIGATIONS. 

In this present age the Masters must work through 
human agencies and the moment you determine to 
give of yourself and your worldly substance to this 
work you become Their recognized agent. But if 
you desire to help humanity through this avenue and 
to receive the personal training necessary to do 
efficient work, and have no worldly substance to give, 
do not hesitate on that account, for you can only give 
of that which you have to give. 

In such an Order dues, as such, would be impos- 
sible, for there can be no price placed upon spiritual 
truth. But as the workers at the headquarters give 
their time and talents without salary, and as the ex- 
penses incident to a world-wide Movement must be 
provided for, it is expected that all who desire to 
help will voluntarily aid the work by contributions 
in accordance with their ability and the Law of exact 
Justice. It is a primal law of occultism that, no mat- 
ter how much is set before you, you are able to assim- 
ilate only in exact ratio with the spirit of helping 
others which you display. If the teachings help you 
it will be evidence that they can help others, hence 
that you can best serve humanity by making it pos- 
sible to spread these teachings abroad. 

Of course this Movement cannot be carried on 
without financial support and it greatly needs such 

1 See Acts II, 6. 



Special Information 431 

support — for the Law of Justice permits humanity to 
be helped only to the extent that, through its own 
efforts, it makes it possible for the help to reach it. 
If you feel an inner urge to study with us, and if you 
find that the lessons help you, you will naturally desire 
to make it possible for other Souls to receive the same. 
Therefore, out of pure love and a desire to help 
others you will give as much as you can afford. Let 
all give according to their ability. 




APPENDIX D. 

HOW TO JOIN-, 

A simple announcement of your desire to study 
with us and a realisation of your obligation to help us 
in return is all that is necessary. The help we ask is 
just what your conscience tells you is the right and 
proper thing to do in accordance with your worldly 
means. Many will be unable to give financial aid and 
from those we ask love and helpful thoughts. If we 
demanded financial aid we would at once put ourselves 
outside the radius of the Spiritual Force, therefore 
we .simply trust and believe that the desire to help 
carry on the work will be implanted in each heart to 
whom this circular appeals, and that the response will 
be such as to enable this Movement to become the 
great power for good that it is intended to be. To 
do this, however, all interested must make it their 
zvork and give it such financial aid as they can, as 
well as the devotion and love of their hearts. In 
short, it must be looked upon as a privilege to co- 
operate in this great work. 

All contributions, both large and small, will be 
gratefully received and promptly acknowledged. No 
matter what amount is given, the real offering is the 
loving desire to help. "Let every man do according 
as he is disposed in his heart, not grudgingly, or of 
necessity, for God loveth a cheerful giver." 

To all who desire to study with us we will send a 
printed lesson each month. In addition to this, 
whenever a pupil is facing a vital problem of life, or 
when confronted with a question whose solution is of 
importance to his spiritual growth, he has the privi- 



How to Join 433 

lege of writing to the Teacher of the Order and briefly 
stating his need. The reply will contain the love, 
sympathy and guidance needed by him for his spir- 
itual welfare. All such letters should be addressed 
to the Secretary, who will refer them to the Teacher 
and transmit the reply in the strictest confidence. 

Pupils are furnished with lessons for six months on 
trial. At the end of that time if they have in no way 
expressed their appreciation of the teachings, the 
lessons are discontinued, for the income from con- 
tributions does not keep pace with the expenses, and 
with our limited funds we cannot afford to send les- 
sons to those not vitally interested in the particular 
work of this Order. Those who do not find the 
lessons helpful are requested to notify us to discon- 
tinue them. 

You will greatly facilitate our work if before ask- 
ing questions in regard to it you will carefully study 
this Appendix to see if the information you desire is 
not contained therein. 

Address F. Homer Curtiss, M. D., Secretary 

International Headquarters 
822 Black Bidg., Los Angeles, Cal., U. S. A, 

Our correspondence is so large that we cannot 
answer letters immediately, but will always endeavor 
to do so within one week after their receipt. 



INDEX 



Abyss, the great, 48. 

Acid, oceans of carbonic, 205. 

Acts, quoted, 153, 393. 

Adam, first was sexless, 233; means 

red earth, 243; punishment of, 247; 

sleep of, 243. 
Adam and Eve, Third Race, 232, 242; 

banished because, 246. 
Aeroplane, perfected by Atlanteans, 

388. 
Age, Golden, 239; Kali Yuga, 152; 

Lemurian or Jurassic, 232; 
Alchemy, 15 the Order of, 62; of 

Nature, 318; use of salt in, 386. 
Alcohol, see Chapter VII; composition 

of, 100; escapes into astral, 100; 

results of use, 100. 
Alcyone, solar system journeys round, 

39. 
Allegiance, to Teacher must be un- 
swerving, 21. 
Allegory, Bible an, 355; of Jesus' life, 

342. 
Alphabet, four letters of Nature's, 

358; tells story of life, 369; Nature's 

Mystic, see Chapter XXVIII; origin 

of the, 254. 
Aluminum, metal of Jupiter; blue, 262. 
Ambition, astral entities work upon 

pupil's, 264; third temptation, 292. 
Amos, quoted, 152. 
Ancestors, arts taught by Divine, 235; 

Lunar, 180-1-4; work of, 180; Solar, 

182-4. 
Androgynous, early Third Race was, 

188, 231; question of condition, 162. 
Angel, of flaming sword, 173; of the 

Lord, 316; the Guardian, 372; who 

announced Jesus, 153. 
Angels, are messengers, 342; behold 

only The Christ, 343; feminine 

aspect of humanity, 343 ; the Seven, 

186. 
Animals, breeding advances the, 402; 

follow normal instinct, 215; governed 

by a Group-Soul,_ 170, 215, 286; 

higher intelligence in, 286; lack free- 
will, 286; suffering of wild, 403. 
Announcement, of the Order, 421. 
Annunciation, Order of the, 62. 
Ape, in the world-forest, 371. 
Apes, man not descended from, 233-5; 

origin of, 54. 
Apollonius, mantle of, 368. 



Approval, striving for, 130. 

Aquarius, One of Ezekiel's four sacred 
animals, 39; sign of Son of Man, 
Man from the East, 39; Uranus en- 
tered, in 1912, 39; Manus remains 
7 years in, 39. 

Arabs, use of salt among, 390. 

Argument, avoid, 419. 

Ark, of Noah, 263. 

Arts, taught by Divine Ancestors, 235; 
the lost, 387. 

Astral, see teachers; bodies evolved 
by, 181; defined, 156; life in the, 
156-7; teachers, knowledge limited, 
107; work on pupil's ambition, 264. 

Astral entities, see entities. 

Astral-plane, definition of, note to, 
156; ruled by violet, 365. 

Astral world, special training needed 
before entering, 71._ 

Atlanteans, 236; culmination of phy- 
sical man, 236; degeneration of, 
237; degraded sex-force, 246; leg- 
ends concerning, 236; perfected 
aeroplane, 388; sixth and seventh 
sub-races of, 237; worshiped the 
body, 261. 

Atlantis, cause of destruction of, 246; 
destruction began, 189; the flood of, 
236. 

At-one-ment, Bible shows steps of, 77; 
lessons necessary to, 132; of a 
planet, 44. 

Attainment, not far off, 177, 267; only 
Path of, 74; Soul must prove its, 
276. 

Attention, focused on personality, 130. 

Aura, color of, 362; condensed by, 
344; determined by, 39; forces form 
a protecting, 49; of earth infected, 
219; thoughts preserved in earth's, 
388. 

Automobile, Karma illustrated by, 119. 

Avatar, see Chapter X; appearance de- 
termined by, 140; Avesha, how to 
judge an; messages of, differ, 144; 
in every movement, 145; body of an, 
139, 151; definition of; has no 
Karma, 137; Jesus a direct, 139; 
Krishna, an, 140; need for an, 141; 
not a mortal, 138-9; prophesies of, 
147; responding to the, 26; teaches 
Wisdom Religion, 147; time of com- 
ing, 148; to prepare for the, 410. 

Axioms, occult; as above, so below, 
189; when the pupil is ready, 71. 



Index 



B 

Baal, priests of, 264. 

Babel, tower of 237. 

Bacteria, origin of, 219. 

Balance, the Law as, 197. 

Baptist, John the, 144; 383. 

Barefoot, Friars, 309; meaning of 
symbol, 317; reason for going, 308. 

Barnacles, symbol of the, 135. 

Battle, between good and evil, 248; is 
not one sided; not outside of self, 
92; never fight another's, 92. 

Bhagavad-Gita, quoted, 30-3-7; 140, 269, 
356, 378. 

Bible, Allesrory of Fifth Race, 355; not 
literal, 370; symbol of Red Ray, 189; 
symbolic, not historical, 75; synthetic 
picture, 379. 

Bird, of Life, bestride the, 126-7-8, 133. 

Black is no color, 360; 9 is number of, 
359. 

Blood circulation, illustrates Karma, 
122-3; humanity the, of Heavenly 
Man, 122; salt necessary to, 386; 
strike on the lintel, 110; symbology 
of, 189, 190, 326. 

Blue, office of, 362; corresponds to 
Jupiter, tin, aluminum, 362. 

Boat, of personality rocks, 38. 

Body, conditions for „ creating a, 219, 
224; effect on mental, 82; evolved 
by Lunar Fathers, 181-4; has normal 
animal desires, 215; must sanctify 
and control, 215; no function of im- 
pure, 216; of humanity, 273; sex of 
corresponds to Soul, exceptions 160- 
1; worshiped, 183, 259, 261. 

Body, spiritual; of the Avatar, 139; 
151; must feed, 74. 

Brain, channels in, 304; must be train- 
ed to respond, 109, 289; registers 
only, 288; train not to dream, 304; 
when evolved into fit instrument, 234. 

Bread, the mystic, 74. 

Breath, Great, of Brahm, 195, 409; 
how to use the, 349; man endowed 
with, 233; Manus enter through the, 
205; may spread disease, 167; more 
than physical life, 166; of the Spirit 
purifies, 189; power of the, 166. 

Breathing, effect of rhythmic, 350; ex- 
ercises, how to use, 350; thoughts 
held while, 351. 

Brimstone, action of, 81; lake of, 80. 

Brine, action of 387. 

Brotherhood, many forms, 26; not true, 
404; Universal, real, 153-4. 

Brothers, Elder, evolved through lower 
Orders, 52. 

Buddha, descended from a serpent, 242. 

Bush, the burning, 315-6 



Business, find your own, 89; mind your 
own, 88; minding your, helps all, 
96; must be sactioned by The Christ, 
32; your Father's, 95; your real, 91-4. 

Butchers, effect on, 403. 



Cannot, never say I, 328. 

Cares, business, 31; household, 33. 

Cataclysms, a partial occurs at, 41; at 
end of sub-races, 312; due to al- 
chemical changes, 43; due to inhabit- 
ants, 387; in the life, 389; in phy- 
sical, mental and psychic realms, 41; 
of Atlantis, 238; of Sixth and Seventh 
sub-races, 238; those v/ho survive the 
coming, 82; to adjust conditions, 42, 
116. 

Celibacy, results of, 250. 

Cell, each Soul a, 121; not redeemed 
individually, 188. 

Center, of Civilization, each must find, 
410; founded by Aveshas, 145; how 
to make yourself a, 352; of Right 
Living, 178; the Great, 145, 410; the 
Heart, 112, 411; to be founded, 239. 

Centers, Bible references to, 110; laya- 
128, 181; left unprotected, 105; life- 
forces flow through, 98; of body 
protected, 98; of civilization founded 
by Aveshas, 145; of mind, 167-9; of 
power, 164; of subconscious mind, 
167; unfolded normally, 98. 

Century, forces during the quarters of, 
148, 150. 

Changes, Alchemical, going on, 43-4. 

Channel, every, used by the Masters, 
53 ; seek your special, 32. 

Characters, great are always, 275. 

Charity, is, 298. 

Childhood, of the Race, 68. 

Children, born lacking birthright, 225; 
all mankind are, of, 188; fill the 
minds of, 226. 

Chinese, belong to Fourth Race, 229. 

Christ, The, a consuming fire, 154; 
alone worthy of worship, 37; awakens 
latent possibilities, 91; becomes indi- 
vidualized, 139, 142; birth of, in 
heart, 77; blood of, 190; brings har- 
mony, 97; causes evolution, 214; 
— child brought forth, 27; descends 
into hell, 83; focused in an Avatar, 
137; immersed in matter to, 58; 
life-giving force, 395; mansion pre- 
pared by, 93; must spiritualize body, 
98; not an impersonal force, 326; 
power shut lion's mouth, 71; — prin- 
ciple, redeems, 415; seed, 154; six 
the number of, 60; Star is risen, 154. 

Cinders, simile of, 199-201. 

Circle, meaning of the, 365, 414. 

Circulation, salt necessary to, 386. 



Index 



Civilization, of Atlantis, 236; Salt 
marks advances in, 386; Souls wait 
for certain stage of, 159. 

Clairvoyance, 169. 

Class, how to form a, 418. 

Clay, effect of, 317. 

Clef, bass and treble, 46, 359. 

Climate, karmic effect of, 120. 

Closet, enter to pray, 111, 355. 

Coal, formation of, 205, fossils in, 210. 

Coffee, effect of, 101. 

Cohabitation, rule for, 220; thoughts 
during, 224. 

College collects wisdom, 110. 

Color, effects of. 196, 361; place in 
Nature, 358; the seven Rays, 159, 
180. 

Colors, seven born of white, 360; three 
primary, 359. 

Comets, source and destiny of, 42. 

Commandment, the Eleventh, see Chap- 
ter VI, definition of, 88. 

Commands, arbitrary never given by 
Master, 282. 

Common-sense, teachings must meet, 
265. 

Communication, constructive and de- 
structive methods, 107; laws ot 
spiritual same to-day, 355; method of 
true spiritual, 104; spiritual is in- 
dependent, 105; spiritual is uplift- 
ing, 106-8; subjective method, 105; 
true method never depletes, 108. 

Companion, each will have true, 268. 

Compassion, first awakened, 73; key- 
note of the Masters, 105. 

Compensation, the Law as, 41, 194, 404. 

Compost heap, simile of, 323. 

Concentration, definition of, 347; hours, 
410.; on this Order, 411. 

Condemn, nothing but, 406. 

Conditions, old fall away when, 117. 

Conscience, how to distinguish, 373; 
Voice of, 371. 

Consciousness, A God-, 325; animal, 
perfected in reason, 182; Avatar has 
The Christ-, 139; Cosmic, 167, 373; 
human, perfected in intuition, 182; 
new state of in each globe, 207; 
seven states of, 50; sex inheres in 
all states of, 160; stages in growth 
of, 208; The Christ-, 372-3. 

Contact, personal, must come into, 22, 
63. 

Continents, rise from sea, 388. 

Conventions, the world's are necessary, 
262; truth back of all, 262. 

Conversion, phenomenon of, 209; sud- 
den, 103; true, 128. 

Correspondence, Law of, 357; personal 
carried on, 23. 

I. Corinthians, quoted 74, 94, 102, 215. 

Cosmos, seven-fold division illustrated, 50 



Crank, don't become a, 296. 

Create, power to, a gift of the Elohira, 
225; to, a body, 219, 224. 

Creation, A master's description of, 
204; according to the desires, 218; 
first, the light, 321; four periods of, 
320; fourth the Path, 323; methods of 
perfect, 224; second, the firmament, 
321; third, the dry land, 322. 

Creations, of your thoughts, 329; 

Creating, by emanation, 187. 

Creative-force, active on all planes, 218; 
becomes a curse, 219; Nature suf- 
fers from a perversion of, 220; nega- 
tive aspect of, 335. 

Crisis, for planet and individual, 42. 

Criticism, avoid, 385, 425; effect of, 
293, 385; tendency to, 382. 

Cronus, the Reaper, 332. 

Cross, of matter, diagram of, 57; older 
than Christianity, 57; symbol of the, 
57. 

Crucifixion, of personality, 326. 

Crusaders, the, 76. 

Crust, of earth consolidated by, 44. 

Cup, symbol of the, 266. 

Curse, not a punishment, 225. 

Cursed, is the ground, 225. 

Cycles, the Law as, 41, 195; Messianic, 
148; of necessity; everything a siep, 
35; of the century, 148-9. 

Cyril, Bishop of Alexandria, 27. 



Dare, Do, Keep Silent, meaning of, 
416. 

Darkness, composed of, 323-4; created 
by the Elohim, 325; creeping things 
of the, 324; is pure spirit, 360; men 
love, 200; must be faced alone, 91; 
swallows failures, 328; the Outer, 
323. 

Daniel, in lions' den, 71. 

Day-period or Round, 205, 229; Races 
in each, 229; the third, 181. 

Death, conditions after, 156-7; merely 
changes in form, 400; Valley of the 
shadow of, 87. 

Debts, karmic, none exempted, 40. 

Deceived, cannot be if, 79. 

Deception, many avenues of, 109. 

Deep, denizens of your, 327. 

Degree, fifteenth of the Masons, 62; 
Fifth, includes esoteric students, 56; 
First, 56; Fourth includes advanced 
students, 56; Orders of the, 56-7, 
when you enter the, 212; Orders of 
each, 54; Second, 56; Seventh, em- 
braces the apes, 54; Sixth, embraces 
leaders and teachers, 55; Third, more 
than human, 56; the Divine, 65. 



Index 



Degrees, see Chapter III; correspond 
to musical scale and spectrum, 54; 
humanity divided into seven, 52; il- 
lustrated by plant, 51; seven orders 
of each, 52, 54. 

Deification, of sex, man's mistake, 259, 
262. 

Demon, of matter, 262. 

Depression, complaints about the, 316; 
follows awakening, 86; must be faced 
alone, 91; reasons for, 89; strength- 
ens courage, 92; to compensate for 
exaltation, 195. 

Desert, how formed, 388; of Sahara, 
389; symbol of, 315. 

Desire, debased or uplifted by thoughts, 
226; is feminine, 254; sexual, natural 
expression of love, 226; world of, 208. 

Desires, mastered not killed, 398. 

Despond, Slough of, 87-9. 

Destiny, of Soul, 121, 286; must be 
worked out, 269. 

Development, personal, a result, not an 
object, 32; psychic, as a sign of 
Avatar, 151; psychic, should result 
from, 104; result of, 33, 309; results 
of "sitting for," 104; spiritual, noth- 
ing can stop, 30-1; Spiritual, first 
step awakens, 73; stage of, will mani- 
fest, 276. 

Devil, can tempt only, 290; children of 
the, 80; composed of, 79, 381; en- 
titization of, 248; origin of, 241; 
self-created, 220; transmuted by, 249. 

Diagram, of cross in matter, 57; of 
Hierarchies, 185; of the Orders, 57. 

Diet, no rules for, 407; not important, 
399. 

Disciples, cannot decide readiness for 
advance, 71; must acquire Wisdom, 
72; be proved, 72; must be trained, 
109; must face self, 324; must recog- 
nize Teacher, 72; must work out prob- 
lems, 106; when a fit instrument, 281. 

Discipline, of self required, 22. 

Discord, apples of, 255. 

Discouragement, Victory over, the great- 
est, 45. 

Discretion, shall preserve thee, 72. 

Discrimination, first to be developed, 
282; rules for, 289. 

Disease, created by man, 219, 260; rea- 
son for, 48; transmitted by rats, fleas, 
flies, etc, 396. 

Disobedience, not punished but adjusted, 
116. 

Dispensation, the New, 200. 

Disturbed, when, 38. 

Diver, Simile of the, 126. 

Divine, action of in heart, 73; merge 
human into, 381; union with the, 74. 

Divorce, reasons for, 223. 



Doctrine, the esoteric, 68; founded on 
purity, 251; given by Saturn, 241; 
given only to initiated, 69; in all 
religions, 68; preparation necessary 
for, 71; reasons for, 69; scientist must 
study, 69; taught in parables, 69; 
widely recognized, 370. 

Doctrine, The Heart-, synthesis of all, 
177. 

Doctrine, The Secret, quoted, 54-5, 68, 
70, 115, 137-8, 156, 169, 171, 180-3-4-5, 
207, 230-1-2-4-5, 242-3, 259, 262, 331- 
3-4, 341, 360, 408, 414. 

Door, the open, 112. 

Doors, how opened, 100; opened by 
sweat of brow, 246; psychic, 98; 
spiritual movements are, 112. 

Dot, in circle, 332. 

Doubt, natural period of, 86; result 
of thought-currents, 92. 

Dough, simile of the, 41. 

Dragon, sacred, 242. 

Dreams, fearlessly interpret, 303; rea- 
sons for same, 168; three kinds of, 
303. 

Drunkard, cannot enter Heaven, 102; 
duty to, 101; Masters cannot con- 
tact, 102; must rebuild centers, 102; 
obsessed, 103; suddenly stop drink- 
ing, 103. 

Duodecimal system, 88. 

Duties, Life's, see Chapter I; always 
has strength for real, 34; another's, 
do not do, 33; attitude toward, 31, 36; 
cannot leave undone, 30; classes of, 
29; do your full, 134; household, 
preventing study, 31; imaginary, 30; 
nearest the highest, 33; never leave 
a plain undone, 281; performed 
through compulsion, 31; personal de- 
velopment not the first, 32; real 29; 
reason for, 30; results of Karma, 30; 
stepping-stones, make them, 33. 

Duty, a student's first, 30-2; do your 
cheerfully, 384; example of salt, 392; 
in Grand Plan, 124; one real, 32; to 
your teacher, 385; toward organiza- 
tions, 32. 

Dweller on the Threshold, each must 
meet, 64; in Zanoni, 100. 

Dynasties, the Divine of early Races, 
70. 

£ 

Earth, the, becomes a sun, 44; becomes 
a pole-star, 46; becomes diseased, 387; 
-chain of globes, 207; created by the 
Elohim, 179; culminating point, 46, 
331; eighth note, 46; our Mother, 310; 
prepared by serpent-power, 243. 

East. Aquarius, the Man from the, 37. 

Eating, thought-force important in, 399} 
worshiped, 400. 



Index 



Ecclesiastes, quoted, 2*. 

Eden, Garden of, 173; path back to, 
336; symbolizes, 244-6. 

Egg, all life from an, 128, 231; man- 
kind born from an, 231; the World- 
128; world hatched from an, 243. 

Ego, Suum, 72. 

Egypt, followers led out of, 337; Lord 
crucified in, 78; symbol of, 78. 

Eight, meaning of number, 368; num- 
ber of evolution, 359, 368; symbol 
of evolution, 58; symbol of Order 
of 36, 58. 

Eighth sphere, is hell, 79. 

Elohim, created the earth, 180; guide 
evolution, 206, 331; preside over the 
Rays, 180; Satan one of the, 247, 
333; Saturn one of the, 241. 

Emanation, of the Masters, 188; Real 
Self an, 129. 

Emanations, responsible for, 304. 

Emotions, effect of, 168; purified, 391. 

Enemy, your great, 91. 

Enthusiasm, must die, 127. 

Entities, Astral: are discarnate mortals, 
104-6; enter through ambition, 264; 
how to judge advice of, 107; mis- 
leading, 258, 354; must steal atoms, 
105-7; not spiritual, 106; pervert sex 
forces, 265; reach student earlier, 
290; training to control, 99; use 
flattery, 290. 

Entities,_ obsessing are, 104; obsessing 
sap vitality, 106; obsessing use mag- 
netism, 309; soulless, 99. 

Entity, earth a living, 387. 

Environment, can foster spiritual 
growth, 380; can transmute your, 
328; chosen by the Soul, 34, 117, 157, 
284; not insurmountable, 276, 314, 
328; preventing study, the remedy, 
29, 31; trials characteristic of, 314. 

Ephesians, quoted, 330. 

Epicurus, quoted, 375. 

Epilepsy, brought on by, 265. 

Errors, how to determine psychic, 276-7. 

Esoteric, hidden, see doctrine, also 
teachings. 

Essences, life- arise, 387. 

Essenees, 383. 

Ethyl, a destructive element, 100; 
narcotics contain, 100. 

Evil, a negative aspect of, 199, 200-2; 
how to transmute, 248-9; man can 
produce, 381; reason for, 172; the 
result of man, 219. 

Evolution, see Chapter XIII; begin- 
ning of, 192; begins from above, 179; 
begun by the light, 192-3; compre- 
hension of all stages, 325; connected 
with Karma and Rebirth, 179; Dar- 
winian theory of, 179, 228, 232; dual 
begins, 233; force back of, 393; 



Evolution, etc. — Continued. 

guided by Rishis, 206; Man has ma- 
terial and spiritual, 229; man stops 
his, 405 ; Masters affinitized to every 
stage of, 53; 9 is number of, 359; 
object of, 34, 212, 401; of animals 
advanced, 402; of body, mind, Soul, 
183; of physical man, 184, 232; of 
Soul, illustrated in Bible, 75; perfect, 
must be, 183; retarded by mental 
attitude, 36; scheme of, 257, 401; 
spiritual repeats stages of physical, 
210; The Christ- force causes, 214, 
229; three streams of, 182, 274; 
through all kingdoms, 229; thumb 
marks stage of, 367; truly human 
begins, 232. 

Evolution, spiritual, from above, re- 
sult of, 229; human stage, 212; vege- 
tative and animal stages of, 211. 

Examples, prominent characters are, 
275. 

Exercises, breathing, 350-2. 

Existence, aim of physical, 94. 

Exodus, quoted, 110, 315, 331. 

Experiences, all in the One Life, 285; 
learn through others,' 287; Soul 
learns by, 288. 

Eye, An, how developed, 194; mean- 
ing of Open, 414; opening of the, 
244, 316; the Third, atrophy of, 156. 

Ezekiel, four animals of, 39; quoted, 
115. 



F natural, 363. 

Faculties, disorders of psychic, 260; 
many unfolding higher, 109; practices 
to unfold dangerous, 346; psychic 
must unfold normally, 25; spiritual 
deadened, 246. 

Faith, in self necessary, 128. 

Fall, of man, 182; a descent into mat- 
ter, 248; an opportunity, 257. 

Famine, not of bread, 151. 

Farming, dry, 318. 

Fasting, forty days, 291. 

Father-in-heaven, knows your needs, 
125; overshadows personality, 74, 182; 
works of, doing the, 73, 380. 

Fathers, Lunar, evolve human forms, 
181; progenitors of humanity, 187; 
relation of, 184; work of, 180-4. 

Fathers, Solar, progenitors of humanity, 
187; relation of, 184; work of, 182-4. 

Faults, how to conquer, 93. 

Faustus, Dr., story of, 290. 

Fear, have no, 354; kills the will, 173; 
love casts out, 177; must be con- 
quered, 172, 299; role of, 173; the 
servant of God, 173. 

Fearlessness, must be absolute, 70. 



Index 



Feet, put shoes off, 3 IS; symbology of, 
316. 

Field, as symbol of environment, 120. 

Fiend, man has created a, 262. 

Fifteen, meaning of, 415; see Order of 
the. 

Fire, a gift of the Gods, 233; destroys 
forms, 81; highest element, 81; of 
Divine Love on stone, 340; of the 
Lord, 264, 333; the creative, 248, 
2S0. 

Fires, earthly, 264; of Karma, 81; the 
.49, 165. 

Firmament, creation of the, 322; forces 
from distant, 43. 

Fission, humanity reproduced by, 231. 

Five, meaning of number, 366; number 
of humanity, 61; symbol of Order 
of 15, 61. 

Flats, effect of, 359. 

Flattery, psychics who use, 282; a 
method used by astral teachers, 290. 

Flaws, tendency to pick, 92. 

Flocks, kept by Moses, 315. 

Flood, the great, 236, 246. 

Fohat, seven sons of, 197. 

Food, found in environment, 401; how 
planets assimilate seven kinds, 51; 
spiritual growth not due to, 397; 
xvorshiped, 400. 

Foot, symbology of, 308. 

Force, at sea coast, 313; breathed in, 
not your personal, 351; creative, 
workings of the, 410; of sun is rea- 
son, 310; the Father-, 312-3; the 
Mother-, 310. 

Forces, earth's-at noon, 319; earth's 
finer, see Chapter XXIII; earth's- 
vary with locality, 312; executors of 
harmony, 115; of Karma not blind, 
115; of sex must be balanced, 335; 
earth's- use of, 311. 

Foreheads, name in, 48, 240. 

Form, created by, 358. 

Forms, geometrical of crystal, daisy, 
man, 51; of nature, 357. 

Formulas, occult, effect of, 383. 

Foundation, must create your, 322. 

Four, contains ten, 301; meaning of 
number, 366. 

Freedom, political for woman, 338; so- 
called sex, 265. 

Free-will, man alone has, 170, 285-7; 
man begins to use, 235; man's great 
gift, 214; man's is limited, 122; Soul 
has, 122. 

Fruit, love not a clandestine, 39"5; of 
the Spirit, 293; of the tree, 244; 
sun imprisoned in, 371-2; the first, 
150; the forbidden, 257. 

Fulfillment, cycle of, see Chapter II; 
for individual, Race, planet, 40, 47; 
for movements, 49; forces released 



Fulfillment, etc. — Continued. 

during, 40; great cycle of lasts, 39; 
influence on man and nations, 47; 
influence on occultists, 48; lower 
phases reaped first, 40; meaning of, 
39; 1912 marks beginning of, 39, 46. 

Function, marks structure, 244; not 
killed out, 252; sex- not impure, 250; 
sex- perverted, 250. 

Functions, all must be developed, 103; 
all natural are pure, 216; controlled 
by subconscious, 167; must master 
all, 251; perverted by thought, 216, 
250; vegetative, 90. 

Furnace, fiery, Lord walks in the, 82. 



Galatians, quoted, 114. 

Garment, personality but a, 126. 

Gases, gathering for explosions, 82; 

spirits of the, 204. 
Gate, ere you enter the Fourth, 135; 

problem of Fourth, 304; the First, 

297; the Fourth, 301-7; the Second, 

298; the Third, 300; the straight, 111. 
Gates, lift up your, 111; of the Path, 

296; of zodiac and body, 414; wis- 
dom crieth at, 111. 
Generation, law of, 259; path of, 263; 

Purity on plane of, 344. 
Generosity, when learned, 118. 
Genesis, quoted, 121, 182-8, 204-5, 225- 

8; 232-3, 241, 261, 320, 333. 
Genius, man's evil, 290-1. 
Geometry, all growth along lines of, 

52; of Nature, 50, 357; 21 the Order 

of, 61. 
Ghost, the Holy; Isis or, 415; sin 

against, 99; will teach you, 144. 
Giants, in those days, 232-5. 
Globe, the winged, 128. 
Globes, all visible are the fourth, 207; 

chains of seven, 207; earth-chain of, 

207; lunar chain of, 190; man must 

function on seven, 209. 
Globular, humanity was, 205. 
Gnosis, Pythagoras' definition of, 66. 
God. Higher Self the personal, 74, 121, 

375; is Love, 374; recognizing on 

earth, 74; the Sons of, 67, 233, 262; 

whole armor of, 330. 
Gods, as, knowing good and evil, 246; 

presence of on earth, 74, 184, 241. 
Gold, color orange, planet sun, 362; 

use of in occultism, 363. 
Goods, portion of, 287; your worldly, 

328. 
Grail, the Holy, 15 the Order of, 63. 
Gratitude, failure to receive, 119. 
Grave, must lie in the, 323. 
Great Deep, Spirits hover over, 204. 
Great Ones, spirits of descend, 204. 



Index 



Green, corresponding metal is lead, 364; 

office of, 363; planet is Saturn, 363; 

why Nature is, 363. 
Grieve, no time to, 134. 
Group- Soul, governs animals, 170, 182, 

215. 
Growth, all along geometrical lines, 52; 

how to hasten, 346; most favorable 

climate for, 313; not hot-house, 99; 

spiritual must follow plant, 379; 

spiritual not a matter of food, 397. 
Guidance, each Soul has Divine, 221; 

personal, of Higher Self, 353; taught 

in Bible, 355. 
Guides, an infallible, how to distinguish, 

373. 
Guides, misleading astral, 258; also see 

Entities. 
Gynt, Peer, meaning of, 269. 

H 

Habits, how to change, 93, 218; must 
be mastered, 101; the result of, 168. 

Hag, the old, 261. 

Hair, color and texture determines, 356. 

Halo, around sun, 186. 

Hamlet, a part assumed, 156; was mis- 
taken, 95. 

Harmony, hos to spread, 97; the Second 
Gate, 29. 

Hatred, effect of, 344. 

Healing, rationale of all, 344. 

Health, of psychics, 108; worshiped. 
163. 

Heart Center, door of, 112; dwell at 
the, 202. 

Heaven, not a post-mortem state, 93; 
seek ye first the kingdom of, 200. 

Hell-fire, see Chapter V; a bogie out- 
grown, 78; all must pass through, 
81-2-3; Christ descends into, 83; com- 
posed of, 82; consumes only the false, 
84; endures as long as, 84; gates of 
79; has three meanings, 79; not 
literal, 81; on four lower planes, 83; 
permit loved ones to stand in, 82; 
is separation from God, 82; should 
be a comfort, 84. 

Help, when you desire, 344. 

Hercules, labors of, 395. 

Hermes, Book of, quoted, 332; lamp 
of, 368. 

Hierarchies, seven great, 179, 186; each 
manifest, 186; diagram of the, 185. 

Hierophant, policy of every, 70. 

Hindus, curelty of, 396. 

Holy City, pinnacle of, 292. 

Holy Ghost, see Ghost. 

Holy of Holies, once having found, 37; 
set up stones, in, 336. 

Horse, training of, illustrates Karma, 
124. 



H. P. B., explanation of life of, 163. 

Humanity, childhood of, 66-7, 188; 
greatest test of, 245; highest Order 
of, 187; is progenitor of future, 187. 

Humility, exalting your, 132. 

Hymn, of the Order quoted, 308. 



I Am, 126-7, 354. 

I and i, golden, 129; illiterate use of, 
130-1; individuality the, 406; symbol 
of, 127. 

Ideal, of this Order, 22. 

Ideas, woman must lift up world's, 255. 

Illumination, see Chapter XXX; claim- 
ing, 133; given for, 327; if you still 
lack, 383; is blossom of Soul, 382; 
is the, 379; the result of, 316, 380. 

Image, of the heavenly, 74; of God, 
164. 

Images, thought creates, 170. 

Imagination, 170. 

Imbeciles, reason for, 104. 

Impatience, controlling, 118. 

Incarnation, Advanced Souls attracted 
to, 224; after myriads of, 287; an 
Avatar a Divine, 138; claiming this 
is last, 158; in alternate sexes, 159; 
more Souls out of than in, 159; 
number of, 122; often accomplishes 
little, 122, 272; Soul chooses, 117, 
157; Souls wait for certain time of, 
159; time between, 159. 

Individuality, definition of, 127; incarn- 
ates, 156; is never lost, 285. 

Indweller, the Divine, 183. 

Inequalities, secret of, 234. 

Influence, of earth, 45; of Stars, 45; 
of Uranus, 40; of zodiac on subcon- 
scious mind, 90; planetary, not malign, 
43; responsible for disturbing, 35; 
responsible for your, 303-4. 

Information about the Order, 423. 

Ingratitude, suffering from, 119. 

Iniquity, "depart ye workers of," 112. 

Initiates, Adepts, Mahatmas, 52; called 
serpents, 242; Jesus a great, 78. 

Initiation, humanity facing its, 336; 
Job a history of an, 111, 241; life 
brings about, 63; 9 number of, 359; 
none can tell when ready for, 71; 
of the Race and planet, 246; on 
higher planes first, 63; star of, 
320-1-5; way always opens for, 70. 

Initiator, Saturn the Great, 45, 242-7, 
333. 

Injustice, social, 120; by Masters, 120. 

Innocence, of ignorance; of Wisdom, 
68. 

Insanity, brought on by, 265. 

Instinct, definition of, 182. 

Instruction, necessary for personal, 429; 



Index 



Instructors, Divine, the first, 70; watch 
life after life, 71; withdrew, 235 

Instrument, Soul uses, 287; when pupil 
is trained, 281. 

'"S^'i 604, P ervcrts Iov e, 216; power of, 
165, training of necessary, 280, 384- 
two uses of, 381. 

Intercourse, no promiscuous, 258 

Interpretation, rules for, 289. 

Interruptions, how to make use of, 31. 

Intuition, a feminine faculty, 339; listen 
to voice of, 266; must confirm all 
teachings 258; must illumine mind, 
183; perfection of consciousness, 182: 
V oice of God, 182. 

Inventions, due to, 387. 

Involution, 207, 234. 

lion, corresponds to red; a metal of 
Mars, 360. 

Isaiah, quoted, 111, 311, 326, 333 

Ism, seven veils of, 253; teachings of, 
59; the Mother-principle, Virgin 
Mary, 27, 415; Temples of, 254 

Ists Unveiled, quoted 41, 228, 242-8 

Israel, twelve tribes of, 54. 



Jerusalem, the New, 84. 

Jesus, the Master: an Avatar, 77; de- 
scended from a serpent, 242; head of 
Healing Hierarchy, 341; is historical, 
77; left no writings, 384; mysteries 
of, secret, 76; personal history unim- 
portant, 77; required training, 280; 
Ruler of the Order of the 1, 58; 
use of the name, 341; we do not 
pray to, 341; wept, 390. 

Jewel, of Great Price, 329. 

Job, an initiation, 111, 241; quoted. 
Ill, 241, 333. 

Johannites, the, 75. 
oin, how to, the Order, 432. 
Jordan, baptism in, 138. 
Jot, not one shall pass, 123. 
Joys, many on the Path, 307; watch 

out for the, 36. 
Jubilee, year of, 40. 
Jupiter, color blue; metals of, 362. 
Justice, includes love, 198. 



Kala-hamsa, black swan, 128. 

Kama, animal-soul, 398. 

Karma, Law of: see Chapter VIII: ad- 
justs effects, 116; affords opportuni- 
ties, 195; all is not, 124; Avatar has 
no, 137; cause and effect, 115; danger 
of invoking, 117; develops Soul- 
qualities, 83, 115-6; duties the result 
of, 30; hell-fire is, 80-1; illustrated 
by automobile, 119; bough and wave, 
114; circulation, 122; falling leaves, 



Karma, etc. — Continued. 

119; horse, 124; seed, 124; imper. 
sonal law, 114; Law as, 194; Lords 
of, 115; Masters subject to, 120; 
minor, 269; not a punishment, 
34. 83, 115-6. 194; of family, 
Race and world, 119, 181, 220; per- 
mit loved ones to bear their, 82; per- 
sonal began, 121; precipitating, 325; 
predestines nothing, 114; Saturn, God 
of, 332; seeds of World sown, 236; 
some is held back, 181; works to- 
ward harmony, 116. 

Key, to all mysteries, 410. 

Key-note, of Masters, 105; of person- 
ality, 358; of universe, 404; of wind 
storm, 42; planet must respond to 
new, 42; sounding a new, 89. 

Kill, Thou Shalt Not, see Chapter 
XXXII; to, means, 406. 

Killed, mineral, vegetable, animal, man 
is, 400. 

Killing, for food, 397; for sport or 
vanity, 404; insects, 396, 403; meaning 
of, 394; mental, 394; thought when, 
403; true, 405. 

Kingdom, door closed to human, 55. 

Kingdoms, the seven, 50. 

Kneipp, treatment, 310. 

Krishna, an Avatar; quoted, 140. 

Knudalini, danger of forcing, 172, 315; 
in spine, 173, 315-6; power of, 165, 
171; serpent-force, 244. 



Lake, of fire and brimstone, 80-1. 

Lamb, blood of the, 110, 190. 

Law, The, see Chapter XIV; claiming 
to be above, 258; guided by Deities, 
331; how to become one with, 202; 
is but one, 192, 317; Jesus came to 
fulfill, 198; lift banner of, 337; love 
fulfills, 201; man has broken, 196; 
nothing gained by breaking, 220; of 
Divine Love, works ever upward, 
331; of memory, 274; races follow 
cyclic, 230; seven-fold in manifesta- 
tion of, 41, 193; understanding of, 
necessary, 87; will bring your mate, 
221. ' 

Law-giver, Saturn- Moses, 333-4. 

Laws, man-made are, 221. 

Lead, metal of Saturn; color green, 
364. 

Learning, Hall of, 281. 

Lesson, learning the, 118. 

Lessons, Soul chooses, 116. 

Letters from The Teacher, quoted, 184. 
286. 

Levi, a serpent tribe, 242; Eliphas, 
quoted, 260-1, 369. 

Lie, the great, 80; includes, II. 

Lies, the father of, 80. 



Index 



Life, a day in school, 134; after death, 
156-7; all is vibration, 192; Book 
of, 203; care-free, 211; every seventh, 
269; man's right to destroy; 396; 
Psalm of 359; spiritual, not easy, 
328; stage of animal, 211; Tree of 
315. 

Life, the One; all life from the, 225; 
All Souls expressions of, 285; evolves 
through forms, 393; expressions only 
changed, 401; higher expressions of, 
400; must not be shut off, 394; on 
higher planes, 343; recognition of, 
409. 

Light, see Chapter XXIV; began evolu- 
tion, 192-3; effect of, 324-5; gaseous, 
204; is love, 201; is matter, 360; let 
there be, 323; only begotten Son, 
192-3; shines in darkness, 321. 

Light of Asia, quoted, 393-4. 

Light on the Path, quoted, 91, 192, 
346, 383, 390, 405-6. 

Lillith, symbol of, 261. 

Lincoln, Abraham, 273-5. 

Lives, many spent sowing seeds, 372. 

Locality, each has special force, 312. 

Lodge, the Great White; call White 
because, 187; composed of, 53, 187; 
back of movements and evolution, 53; 
degrees and orders of, 53, 187; is 
never arbitrary, 282; utilize every 
avenue, 53. 

Love, an expression of the Divine, 
216, 266-7; Divine is positive pole, 
196; Divine overlaps human, 267; 
highest expression through sex, 218; 
human is lower pole, 196; ideal of, 
267; is God, 73, 374; learn to, 385; 
must turn to Divine, 201; Negative 
polarization of, 199; not limited, 73; 
only endures, 198; positive aspect 
must manifest, 200; reaches highest 
and lowest, 197; sex an effort to 
express, 226; stream of Divine, 202-3; 
synthesises all, 198; temptations come 
through, 197-9, 202; true conception 
of, 410. 

Lucifer, 247, 332-3. 

Lunar, see Fathers. 

Lungs, of the earth, 312. 



M 



Magic, black, 237, 246; is dual, 378; 

white and black, 379. 
Magicians, black, 237. 
Magnet, simile of, 161, 196. 
Magnetism, earth gives out, 309; enters 

through feet, 308. 
iftlacki, quoted, 353. 



Man, acquires speech, 235; became 
warm-blooded, 232; became self- 
conscious, 235; beguiled by woman, 
255; blood of Heavenly, 122; con- 
tains all kingdoms, 400; endowed 
with mind, 182; evolution of Real, 
184; fall of, 182, 248, 257; field of 
activity of, 339; first of earth, second 
from heaven, 74; forms five-pointed 
star, 366; governed by Father-in- 
Heaven, 182; Heavenly, 121, 136; 
highest point in Atlanteans, 236; im- 
presses lower kingdoms, 405 ; must re- 
deem, 405; organs of Heavenly, 124; 
Origin of, see Chapter XVII; posi- 
tive pole, 254, 339; powers of, 165; 
responsible for, 405 ; sign of the Son 
of, 39, 46, 150; Souls part Heavenly, 
161; universally structured type, 366. 

Mana, of Children of Israel, 34. 

Manas, higher and lower, 169, 363-4. 

Manifest, gaining power to, 118. 

Mankind, seven classes of, 52. 

Mansions, in heaven, 93. 

Mantra, power of, 409. 

Marriage, a sacrament, 220-1-4, 253; 
266; holiest relation, 222; man forced 
into, 255; mistaken avoided, 266; of 
the Soul, 266; priests should de- 
termine, 141; substitutes, effect of, 
250; vows and ceremonies, 223; will 
have true, 268. 

Mars is red; its metal iron, 360. 

Master, direct instructions from a, 317; 
is one who, 286; path leading to 
the, 353. 

Masters, the, of Wisdom and Compas- 
sion, cannot contact drunkards, 102; 
cannot interfere, 279; following in 
steps of, 307; how to come close to, 
72, 105; key-note of, 105; never use 
flattery, 290; not all vegetarians, 
399; presence on earth, 184; reason 
postulates, 228; relation to humanity, 
see Chapter XIII; subject to Karma, 
120; working in all movements, 142, 
187. 

Mastery, attained by, 129, 286, 399; 
diet unimportant in, 399; of self 
the object, 22, 296; Path to, 372. 

Matter, geometrical forms of, 51; Soul 
must redeem, 74. 

Masons, 15 among the, 62. 

Meat, Masters who eat, 399; objections 
to eating, 398, 403. 

Meditate, how to, 248, 353; daily, 31, 
384. 

Meditation, definition of, 347; how to 
find time for, 31; select topic for, 31. 

Mediums, are depleted, 108; cause of 
one class, 103; irresponsible type, 103. 

Mediumship, how to judge, 108; re- 
sults of, 108; subjective, 104. 



Index 



Melody, of this planet, 46. 

Membership, Associate, in the Order, 
422; full, in the Order, 23. 

Memory, of Past Lives, see Chapter 
XX; earliest, of mistakes, 282; 
guides personality, 270; how awaken- 
ed, 272; not by chance, 269; power of, 
169; to develop conscious, 305; why 
not more common, 270-1; will come 
when, 271. 

Mercury, is yellow; its metal mercury, 
361. " 

Messages, psychic, must be proved, 
277, 289. 

Microcosm, man is a, 89. 

Mind, the human, 90; centers of human, 
169; is worshiped, 183; man en- 
dowed with, 206, 233; not a play- 
ground, 217; power of, 167. 

Mind, the subconscious, composed of, 
167; explained, 90; is automatic, 90; 
is threefold, 167; Sons of, 206; train 
it, 32, 168. 

Mind, the Superconscious, 90, 169. 

Miracle, the greatest is, 73. 

Mistakes, we tend to repeat, 102. 

Monsters, astral created, 259; semi-hu- 
man, 231. 

Moon, effect of, 180; intuition from 
the, 324; mountain of the, 334; 
mystery planet back of, 364. 

Morals, standard required by disciple, 
251; teachings must not violate, 265; 
world's standards of, required, 253. 

Morals and Dogma, quoted, 62 

Moses, established jubilee, 40; serpent 
of 242. 

Mother, earth our, 310; -force, the 
sea, 313; letters and colors. 360; 
-love, now poured out, 28; the 
World, 204. 

Mother, the Great, holds out arms, 28. 

Motives, what prompts your, 302. 

Motto, meaning of the, 416. 

Mountains, forces of, 312; of God, 316: 
Rocky, 312. 

Movements, aims of this, 137, 153, 202, 
432-7; are doors, 113; concerning 
other, 425; created by followers, 330; 
each has own work, 426; how to 
judge, 113; members responsible for, 
113. 

N 

Name, in foreheads, 48, 240; power of 

a, 420; use of a, 341. 
Narcotics, see Chapter VII; contain 

ethyl, 100; results of use, 103. 
Nature, -forms geometrical, 51, 357; live 

close to, 309; work with, 357. 
Nazarenes, teachings of, 138. 
Necessity, cycle of, Chapter XXI, 123. 



Negative, never be, 354; woman la, 
pole, 254. 

Nemesis, Karma not a, 195. 

Nine, meaning of number, 368-9; num- 
ber of initiation, 359. 

Noah, symbol of, 237. 

Noon, earth-forces at, 319; eat largest 
meal at, 319. 

Number, place of in nature, 358; 

Numbers, even are mundane, odd 
Divine, 369. 



O, meaning of, 365. 

Obedience, implicit required; not blind, 
22; required, 281; voluntary, 22. 

Obligations, financial to Order, 430. 

Obsession, see Entities; sex-thought 
leads to, 258. 

Octave, earth completes an, 46, 332. 

One, meaning of number, 365. 

Ophites, teaching of, 138, 242. 

Opportunity, your, is in, 31. 

Opposites, law of, 196. 

Orange, effect of foods and flowers: 
office of, 362. 

Order, Announcement of this, 421; 
entrance to the Path, 59; how to 
join this, 432; is universal church, 
58; of Alchemy and Regeneration, 
62; of the Annunciation, 62; the 
Law as, 193. 

Order of, the Fifteen, 61; aims of, 
137, 153, 202, 423-7-9; always ex- 
isted, 62; composed of, 240; infor- 
mation concerning, 423; not an or- 
ganization, 425; put forth for, 137, 
153; the Fourth Gate, 301; the Open 
Door, 63; work of, 202, 423-7-9. 

Order of, the Flame: the Holy Grail, 
63; the One, Three, Six, 65; the 
Ten, 64; The Thirty-six; the Twenty- 
eight, 59; the Twenty-one, 60. 

Orders, admission to, 56; negative, 57; 
object of, 56; of each degree, 54; 
positive, 60; their formation mathe- 
matical, 57. 

Organizations, duty to, 32; Order of 
15 not an, 425; outgrown, 424; the 
Lodge works through all, y. 



Parables, Bible, composed of, 75. 

Param-hansa, 128. 

Parasites, origin of, 219; transmit dis- 
ease, 396. 

Parents, unwilling, 226. 

Passions, inflamed by thoughts, 217; 
lessened by vegetarianism, 398. 

Passover, symbol of, 110. 

Past, cannot hold you, 133. 



Index 



Path, of Attainment, see Chapter XXII; 
a narrow, 280; can enter only when, 
322; each sets out in, 275; first step 
on, 72; four periods on the, 320; 
marked out by Soul, 121; regular 
steps on, 296; rules strict, 251; The 
Christ prepares, 94; the only, 74; 
to Mastery, 129; weak lifted out of, 
329. 

Patience, the Third Gate, 300. 

Peace, find the Place of, 49. 

Pearl of Great Price, 72. 

Periodicity, the law as, 195. 

Personality, A servant, 354, 373; Avatar 
transcends, 139; becomes individu- 
ality, 127; built by thought- forms, 
64; but a shadow on earth, 128-9, 
131; colors message, 288; crucifixion 
of, 326; definition of, 127; dual, 264; 
is composite, 89, 93; latent propen- 
sities awaken, 91-2; like actors part, 
156; makes excuses, 130; prism of, 
196; separation from Higher Self, 
99; Soul must redeem, 94; Soul needs, 
131, 286-7; Teacher becoming vari- 
ous, 163. 

Peter, arise, kill, 393. 

Phallicism, days of, 259. 

Philadelphia, Church of, 112. 

Pilgrim, fears to plunge, 32. 

Pineal, a center, 169, 244; function of, 
316. 

Pit, brought out of, 317. 

Pituitary, a center, 169. 

Pity, effect of self-, 171. 

Place, none can fill your, 131. 

Plan, the Grand, must take your place 
in, 121, 269, 278, 286. 

Planet, A living entity; suffers, 40-1; 
created out of, 179; destiny of, 44, 
246, 257; has Karma, 120; its ful- 
fillment, 42-4; melody of, 46; mystery 
the, 364; why created, 257. 

Plant, how it grows, 50-1, 348; intelli- 
gence of, 51. 

Poise, how to attain, 31-5, 195; the 
Law as, 197; Race must attain, 247. 

Polarity, the Law as, 41, 196; of sex, 162. 

Pole, man positive, woman negative, 
254; polarize to positive, 199, 200. 

Politics, woman's influences in, 340. 

Potter, mind of the, 305 ; work of the, 306. 

Poverty, a reason for, 48. 

Power, see Chapter XII; highest in 
heart, 177; intelligent centers of, 165; 
of mind, 167; of subconscious mind, 
168; of the life-principle, 171; of 
thought, 170; e-f will, 170; temptation 
of, 291; the serpent, 171; the supreme, 

16S ' 6 - . 

Powers, how to attain to your, 176; 

knowest thou of self the, 178; man's 

have wrought evil, 177; the seven, 

165; used for personal ends, 380. 



Practical, something to do, 175, 278, 
382-4. 

Practices, Yogi, dangerous, 105. 

Prana, is orange, 361. 

Prayer, definition of, answers to, 347; 
directions for, 111, 355; effect of, 
342; Healing, see Chapter XXVI; 
like a projectile, 343; of Consecra- 
tion, see Chapter XXXIII; power of, 
408; unceasing, for Order, 411. 

Pride, avoid spiritual, 406; spiritual 
most subtle, 381. 

Priestess, Egyptian, 276. 

Priesthood, a divinely appointed, 141. 

Prism, man's misconceptions, 67; of 
matter and personality, 196. 

Procreation, forms of, 232. 

Progeny, of man, 329. 

Projectile, prayer like a, 343. 

Prometheus, 248. 

Prophets, if ever were, are now, 355; 
Schools of the, 311. 

Proverbs, quoted, 66, 111, 305, 355. 

Psalms, quoted, 82-7, 110, 295, 300, 317, 
356, 370. 

Psychic, see Faculties; A, is extremely 
sensitive, 108; a, must be developed, 
105; called Bible names, 274; desire 
of the, should be, 106; is limited by 
education, 109. 

Psychism, see Chapter VII. 

Psychology, teaches, 217. 

Puppet, man not a, 279, 282. 

Purification, see Chapter XIX; stages 
of Man's, 389. 

Purity, see Chapter XVI; departures 
from, 265; not of innocence, but 
wisdom, 68; required of advanced, 
251; world's standards necessary, 
253-8. 

Putrefaction, process of, 390; the first 
step, 291; role of, 387. 



Queen, of the world, 260. 

Qualities, masculine and feminine com- 
plement, 340; must manifest your, 
118. 

R 

Race, see Atlantean; Aryan the, 238; 
first physical, 335; Lemurian, 231; 
perfecting vehicles for the, 224; rea- 
sons for decay, 230; salvation of de- 
pends on, 226. 

Race, Root, the First Great, Polar, 230; 
The second Great, Hyperborean; 
cloud-like and sexless, 231; the Third: 
Lemurians, bones form in, 202; form 
from eggs, 231; sexes separated, 232, 
242; the mindless, 261. 



Index 



Race, the Fourth Root, lowest or turn- 
ing point, 235; majority belong to 
the, 229; received mind, 182; speech 
acquired, arts taught to, 235; taught 
face to face, 188. 

Race, the Fifth Root, the Aryan, 238; 
the Sixth, characteristic of, 239; 
sixth sub, just entering, 238; this 
Order a preparation for, 416-7; 
Seventh, Golden Age, 239. 

Races, gradually evolve, 230; pre- 
Adamite, 261; rise and fall of, 230; 
seven Great, 229; the mindless, 261; 
the yellow, 229, 238. 

Rainbow, 186. 

Rats, transmit plague, 396. 

Ray, personality a, 131. 

Ray, the Red, a creative, 179; Hier- 
archy of the Red, 360; Progenitor of, 
187. 

Rays, seven Great, composed of, 180-4; 
diagram of, 185. 

Reason, is masculine faculty, 339; per- 
fection of instinct, 182. 

Records, Akashic, 174, 369; contain 
every thought, 388; phonographic, 
174. 

Red, aspects of are, 361; effect of, 
196; foods and flowers, effect of, 
361; meaning of, 189; metal is iron, 
361; most physical, masculine, 360; 
planet is Mars, 361. 

Redeem, as strength permits, 181; man 
must, 94. 

Redeemed, world not by one man, 326. 

Redeemer, man becomes a, 212, 213; 
candidate must be a, 325. 

Redemption, meaning of, 98, 410; 
method of 188; of matter, 157. 

Regeneration, of world, 177; serpent 
symbol of, 242. 

Reincarnation, see Chapter XI; among 
old associates, 158; object of, 278; 
of thoughts, 387; proof of, 155; rea- 
sons for, 157. 

Religion, the Wisdom, see Chapter IV. 
All others derived from, 66; Avatar 
teaches, 147; brought to Western 
world, 163; deals with Christ-force, 
378; existed in Atlantis, 67; Jesus 
taught, 67; Pythagoras' definition of, 
66; teaches union with the Divine, 74. 

Renunciation, Path of, 296; of action, 
30. 

Reproduction, methods of, 231-2. 

Reptiles, appearance of the, 206. 

Rest, this Order a house of, 428. 

Resurrection, meaning of, 323; morn 
dawns, when, 84. 

Revelation, an allegory, 147, 190, 332; 
quoted, 85, 112, 137, 147, 256, 266. 

Rib, symbol of Adam's, 232, 242. 



Righteousness, must become Soni of, 

49. 
Ring, pass not, 414. 
Rishis, guide evolution, 206, 331; the 

seven, 180. 
River, streamlets of force from a, 32. 
Rivers, Alpheus and Peneus, 395. 
Romans, quoted, 192, 407. 
Rose, born of suffering, 389; on desert, 

390. 
Round, First, minerals dominate, 205-9; 

Second, vegetable dominates, 205-10; 

humanity is globular, 205; Third, 

reptiles dominate, 206, 210; Fourth, 

close of the, 239; generation begins, 

206; man dominates, 210. 
Rounds, seven required, 207. 
Rules, for the higher life, 384-5. 



Sacrament, definition, 225; marriage a, 

220-1-4, 253, 266; should carry 

potency, 141. 
Sacrifice, of lower forms to higher, 

401; stone of, 60. 
St. John, quoted, 93, 112, 126, 146, 

191-4, 370, 400; vision of, 190. 
St. Luke, quoted, 73, 86, 111, 122, 220. 
St. Mark, quoted, 152. 
St. Matthew, quoted, 77, 111, 123, 

150-5, 164, 197, 323, 346, 356, 378, 

383-6. 
Salt, Symbol of the, see Chapter XXXI; 

action of, 81; ceremonies with, 390-1; 

excess injurious, 388; Great Lake, 

389; necessary to life; 386; role of 

386; symbology, 391; where found, 

387; ye are the, 392. 
Sanctuary, door closed, 263. 
Satan, as Saturn, 248; Hermea on, 

332, One of the Elohim, 333. 
Saturn, the Initiator, as Lucifer and 

Cronus, 332; as Satan, 247; color 

is green, metal lead, 364; domain of, 

45; force of is inertia, stability, 332; 

initiated humanity, 333; tempts Eve, 

247; tests Job, 241. 
Saviors, the 49 crucified, 165. 
Scale, correspondences in musical, 359. 
Sciences, taught Fourth Race, 235. 
Scorpions, power to tread on, 220. 
Sea, wonder from, to, 151. 
Seal, of the Order, 413-6. 
Seed, contains tree, 124. 
Self, The, see Chapter IX; Ego creates 

lower, 64; lower is roused, 89, 90; 

must face your, 64, 21, 324, 385; 

must have faith in, 128; must not 

despise, 126; protects the Real, 126; 

study your, 132; trouble comes from, 

130; you have built up, 64. 
Self, The Higher, see Real Self. 



Index 



Self, The Real, expression of the 
Divine, 129, 136; fix your gaze upon, 
134; is Divine, 342, 371; like thread 
of fire, 134; needs personality, 126; 
not affected by changes, 127; over- 
shadows personality, 371. 

Selfishness, 132. 

Selfrighteousness, second temptation, 
292, 383. 

Sense, no sixth developed, 416. 

Serpent, Symbol of the, see Chapter 
XVIII; astral light the, 242; Brazen, 
243; esoteric wisdom, 241; force, 
244; Jesus born of a, 242; Moses, 
Jesus, Buddha called, 242; Moses 
lifted up the, 243 ; recognized by 
Jesus, 241; symbol of sex, 242; temp- 
tation by the, 247; trail of the, 324, 
under every flower, 281; -worship, 
249. 

Seven, Symbol of Order of the, 28, 
59; a feminine number, 59; mean- 
ing of number, 368. 

Sex_, A stumbling block, 252-6 begin- 
ning of perversion, 262; body same 
as Soul, exceptions, 160-1; change of, 
reasons for, 161-2; deification of, 
262; does not change, 160; final dis- 
use of, 253; -force, a test, 245; 
-forces always creative, 218, 259; 
-forces must be balanced, 335; -force, 
not impure, 250, 262; -force when 
confined to physical plane, 216; in- 
heres in the Soul, 160; killing out, 
212; no freedom permitted, 265; nor- 
mal use, 252; perverted creates dis- 
ease, 219; -question most important, 
257; reform of, 262; serpent symbol 
of, 242; teachings sacred, 249; teach- 
ings veiled, 160, 249; the problem 
of humanity, 45 ; -thought, vortices 
of, 258; when regraded creates, 259. 

Sexes, manifesting both, 162; segre- 
gated, effect of, 336; separation com- 
pleted in Fourth Race, 244; separa- 
tion of the, 160. 

Shade, that lethal, 87. 

Shadow Land, quoted, 104. 

Sharps, effect of, 359. 

Sheaths, oily, 98. 

Sheepfold, entering the, 112. 

Sheol, 79. 

Shoes, symbol of, 317. 

Sibyl, ancient, 108. 

Sign, of Son of Man in heaven, 39, 
46, 150. 

Silence, The, see Chapter XXVII; how 
to enter, 347-9; how to find time 
for, 31-3; how to, thoughts, 353; 
several entering together, 354. 

Silent, Keep, lesson of, 301; meaning 
of, 416. 

Silk, use of in occultism, 308-9. 



Simile of, Abraham Lincoln, 275; auto- 
mobile, 119; barnacles on ships, 135; 
bough dislocating arm, 114; boy play- 
ing truant, 285; bricklayer and archi- 
tect, 96; child bearing a whipping, 
117; child illustrating forgiveness, 
124; cinders, 199; circulation of 
blood, 122-3; college acquiring wis- 
dom, 110; compost heap, 323; diver, 
126; dynamo and wire, 381; earthly 
and golden vessels, 35; Egyptian 
Priestess, 276; falling leaves, 119; 
farmer enriching soil, 120; gardner 
preparing soil, 380; gardner propagat- 
ing poisons, 381; growth of plant, 
348; growth of seed into all kingdoms, 
51; magnet broken, 161, 196; mix- 
ing dough, 41; mother nursing babe, 
311; painter, 170; perfume of flower, 
351; personality as a boat, 38; read- 
ing story, lacking sequel, 338; re- 
moving frog's heart, 327; rose with 
roots in air, 311; running a race, 
1S3; sacred shrine, 252; schoolboy, 
213; seed under rock, 124; skyrocket, 
192; stream over shoals, 338; stream- 
lets forming river, 32; switchboard, 
177; tadpole and frog, 401; telescope, 
36; training a horse, 124; tree grow- 
ing in rock, 33; tree uprooted by 
storm, 42; unclean spirits, 87; wave 
drowning a man, 114; well, 36; wheat 
and rye, 120; wireless telegraphy, 
285; wolves' instincts, 286. 

Sin, the man of, 74; unpardonable, 99. 

Sinai, Mt. law given on, 333. 

Sins, forgiveness of, 123. 

Six, meaning of number, 367, 415; 
number of Nature, 61-2; symbol of 
Order of the, 28, 60, 415. 

Skin, coats of, 182. 

Skyrocket, 192, 201. 

Sodom, Christ crucified in; symbol of 
impurity, 78. 

Solomon, quoted, 72; Seal of, 368 

Something, above physical union, 263. 

Son, becomes one with Father, 373; 
God, gave His only begotten, 73, 
192-8, 409; if you are a, 292; Prodi- 
gal, 122, 287, 291; work in my vine- 
yard, 280. 

Sons of God, 233; duty of, 262; make 
you, 44; temptation by, 247; took 
wives, 261. 

Sons of Righteousness, you must be- 
come, 49. 

Soul, assumes various characters, 156; 
chooses environment, 117, 157; is 
complex, 123; man became a, 233; 
manifests its development, 225; mascu- 
line, in female bodies, 340; learns 
by, 288; more excarnate than in, 
159; must redeem emanations, 181; 



Index 



Soul — Continued. 

no lost, 99; responsible for personali- 
ties, 121; that which belongs to the, 
134; the Over-, 129; when, is young, 
286; woman denied a, 336. 

Soul-qualities, object of Karma, 83, 
115-6. 

Sound, most potent agent, 408; place 
of in Nature, 358. 

Soundless Sound, The, quoted, 129. 

Spark, some project a, 234. 

Speech, greatest of powers, 174; man 
acquires, 235; power of, 164. 

Sphere, the Eighth, 79, 323. 

Spine, currents in, 244; sap of, is, 315. 

Spirits, the Seven, 186; seven unclean, 
87. 

Square, 4 is number of the, 366; sup- 
plementary colors form a, 359; sym- 
bol of Order of the 28, 60. 

Stables, Augean, 395. 

Standard, choose your divine, 88. 

Standards, cannot temporize with, 258; 
required of disciples, 251; world's, 
must be observed, 253, 262. 

Star, earth to become a Pole, 46; five 
pointed, 366; fix gaze on, 320-9; in- 
fluence of generated by, 45; light 
of, Initiation, 321; of Initiation, 
320-1-5; the Christ, 154, 327; your 
ruling, 36. 

Stars, forces of focused on the earth, 
42; influences not malign, 43; mean- 
ing in Seal, 414-5. 

Stomachs, slaves of their, 400. 

Stone, 8 is foundation, 368; is broken, 
334; must be cleansed, 339; of al- 
chemists, 334; of sacrifice, 60; re- 
jected by builders, 336; the feminine 
defiled, 335; Two Tables of, Chapter 
XXV. 

Stones, created by man, 172. 

Streak, the primitive, 366. 

Stream, all are in the, 125, 200; world 
struggling in, 201. 

Study, how to form a class, 418. 

Subconscious, see Mind. 

Suffering, corresponds to matter, 212; 
not sent by God, 327; not uplift- 
ing in itself, 40; of the planet, 40; 
produces bass clef, 46; reason for, 
48, 212; relation to spiritual growth, 
212; result of, 34, 116. 

Sun, Alcyone the Central, 44; earth 
being prepared to become a, 44; em- 
bodied in fruit, 371; fecundates 
germs, 310; force is masculine, 310; 
metal gold, color orange, 362; of 
Righteousness, 349; produces poisons, 
380; the Father-force, 312. 

Swan, the black, 128. 

Swastika, on Thor's Hammer, 41. 



Sword, Angel of Flaming, 173, 246-7, 
336. 

Swords, the bridge of, 48. 

Symbol, meaning of a, 413. 

Symbol of, Adam and Eve, 232, 242-3- 
6; Adam's rib, 232; a stone, 334; 
Babel, tower of, 237; baptism, in 
Jordan, 138; black swan, 128; blood, 
189, 190, 326; brimstone, 80; burn- 
ing bush, 315; cinders, 199, 201; 
cross, 57; cup, golden, 266; Daniel 
in lion's den, 71; desert, 315; diver, 
126; divine triangle, 264; dot in cir- 
cle, 332; Eden, 173; Egypt, 78; feet, 
316; field, 120; fiery furnace, 82; 
foot, 308; fruit of tree, 244, 257; 
I and i, 127; Lillith, 261; Moses and 
flocks, 315; Noah's ark, 237, 263; 
ocean through coral, 205; passover, 
110; prodigal son, 122, 287; Prome- 
theus, 248; red, 189; sacred shrine, 
251; salt, 81; school of Soul, 134; 
ship, 135; shoes, 317; serpent, 244; 
serpent-worship, 249; Sodom, 78; 
Sons of God, 67, 233, 262; Sword, 
the Flaming, 173, 246-7, 336; The 
Order, 413; thousand, 144, 48, 153, 
239; thousand twelve, 54; tree, in 
garden, 244, 259, 315, 333; vipers, 
248; winged globe, 128. 

Symbols, of Nature, geometrical, 357. 

Sympathy, must not kill, 390. 



Tasks, never beyond strength, 181. 

Tea, effect of, 101. 

Teacher, appears when, 71; incarna- 
tion of a great, 163; must decide fit- 
ness, 71; recognized interiorally, 72; 
responsible for teachings, 245; rules 
of a great 385; who break tables 
of stone, 337; who leads astray, 250; 
who uses flattery, 290; who the, is, 
71. 

Teachers, see Astral; self advertised, 
152. 

Teaching, method of this Order, 23; 
seek your particular, 298. 

Teachings, advanced must be pure, 
258; do not accept unless, 113, 265; 
esoteric must be pure, 251; false 
astral, 281; former, from Father 
aspect, 27; founded on purity, 251; 
must be challenged, 265; must be 
proved, 277; of this Order construc- 
tive, 22; why permit false, 70. 

Tears, eyes incapable of, 390; role of, 
389. 

Telegraphy, wireless, 285. 

Temper, outward and inward, 119. 

Temple, the body a, 98, 215; the great 
to be erected, 336. 

Temples, seven steps to, 323. 



Index 



Temptation, all come through love, 
197; created in the past, 325; in 
Wilderness, 290; Masters passed all, 
307; of Eve a test, 245, 257; of 
Eve by Saturn, 247; of spiritual 
ambition, 135; the first, 291; the 
second, 292; the third, 292; to criti- 
size, 92; unsuspected, 327. 

Ten, meaning of number, 369. 
Test, humanity's greatest, 252; of 
mediumship, 108. 

Testament, the New, journey of the 
Soul, 77. 

Testament, the Old, Chaldean symbols, 
77. 

Testing, a period of, 118, 276; of man 
and planet, 257, 332. 

Theophania, 66. 

/ Thessalonians, quoted, 86. 

Things, are no little, 369; importance 
of little, 369. _ 

Think, constructively, 384. 

Thinker, the Silent, 129, 130, 302. 

Thor, Hammer of, 196. 

Thought, creates images, 170; -forces, 
vortices, 258, 303; is dual, 171; law 
of, 170; power of, 165; sex, vortices 
of, 258; tends to express, 170; use 
of, 170-1; while killing insects, 404. 

Thought-currents, from the Masters, 
304; passive to, of environment, 92, 
303; of community, 89, 93, 302-3. 

Thought-forces, elevate, 96. 

Thought-forms, around unborn, 224; 
create personality, 64; projected by 
gods, 181; reincarnate, 387; you 
create, 217. 

Thoughts, are things, 216, 303; how 
to keep pure, 217, 304; must be pure, 
216; put on eating, 399; responsible 
for, 302-4; Strive with thy, 307. 

Thousand, the mystical hundred and 
forty-four, 48, 153, 239; the twelve 
sealed, 54. 

Three, meaning of number, 366. 

Threshold, the Dweller on the, 64. 

Thumb, significance of, 367. 

II Timothy, quoted, 164. 

Tin, metal of Jupiter, 362. 

Tobacco, effect of, 101. 

Tolerance, true, 297-8. 

Tone, every in Nature, 376. 

Torture, mental worse than, 394. 

Touch, personal, depends upon your- 
self, 421; fundamental, 22; how to 
come into, 411; time for, 429. 

Training, personal, how carried on, 
23, 282; of brain necessary, 109, 
289. 

Transmutation, methods of, 227; of 
tadpole, 401. 

Transmute, all into goods, 323. 



Tree, Angel guards the, 246; fruit of 
the, 244; of Life, 259, 315, 333. 

Tremble, use of the word, 328. 

Trials, correspond to climate, 313-4; 
unsuspected, 327. 

Triangle, completed by, 267; flame at 
apex, 264; meaning of the, 366; num- 
bers of the, 360; primary colors form 
a, 359; the interlaced, 367; use in 
seal, 414-5. 

Tribulation, come out of, 85. 

Trinity, Divine completes the, 263; 
Hindu, Egyptian, Christian, 414. 

Trouble, the result of, 34. 

Truth, four modes of, 320; necessity 
for various presentations of, 428. 

Two, meaning of number, 265. 

U 

Union, perfect possible, 267-8; so-called 
"spiritual," 222; with the Divine, 
73-4. 

Unity, meaning of, 285; realizing the, 
407. 

Universe, geometrical law of the, 52. 

Uranus, influence in Aquarius, 40. 



Vacuum, Nature abhors, a, 268. 

Valley, of the shadow of death, 87. 

Vampires, created by man, 218. 

Vegetable, first appearance of the, 210. 

Vegetarians, how to judge; not more 
tolerant, 397. 

Vessels, of clay and gold, 35. 

Vibration, all is composed of, 375; 
stands in the center, 41; the Law as, 
195. 

Victorious, you shall be, 329. 

Violet, effect of, 196, 365; office of, 
364; ruled by Mystery Planet, 364; 
rules astral body, 365. 

Vipers, symbol of, 248. 

Virgin, Mary, psychics call, 274 ; the 
Celestial, 138. 

Virtue, lapses from, 251. 

Visions, symbolic, aid in interpreting, 
25. 

Vitality, augmented by, 108; obsession 
saps, 106. 

Voice, false notes in the, 377; how 
to distinguish, 373; must lose power 
to wound, 175; must penetrate per- 
sonality, 288; tones of reveal char- 
acter, 174. 

Voice of the Silence, quoted, 29, 32, 
86-7, 126, 164, 174-8, 217, 269, 281, 
295, 305-7, 320-4-9, 353-8. 

Vows, marriage, three parties to, 223; 
must be fulfilled, 129, 223; not asked 
of Associate Students, 422. 



Index 



W 

Wait, what, I for, 300. 

Wall, around foot of cross, 58. 

Warrior, pure thoughts become a, 218. 

Wars, and rumors of, 152. 

Water, Christ walking on the, 38; is 
illusion, 321; sea-, contains, 389; the 
feminine force, effect of, 310. 

Watt, Isaac, 276. 

Way, The Perfect, quoted, 333; I am 
the, 379, 384, 406. 

Well, a deep, in each heart, 36. 

Wheat, except a corn of die, 401. 

Wheel, winged, 128. 

Whipple, Edward, quoted, 366. 

Whirlwind, stand in the heart of the. 
202. 

White, unknown on earth, 360. 

Will, life will develop the, 347, 380; 
power of the, 165, 170; should con- 
trol doors, 100; see free-will. 

Wisdom, always accessible, 229; divine 
gained through, 67; object of evolu- 
tion, 34; Religion, 66; serpent the 
symbol of, 241. 

Witnesses, the two, 78. 

Wolves, instincts alike in all, 286. 

Woman, a priestess, 253; demands 
recognition, 338; field of activity of, 
339; in scarlet, 266; must free her- 
self, 254; negative pole, 254; plays 
on passion, 255; question, a burning 
one, 338; responsibilities of, 255; 
suffering developed intuition, 250. 

Word, the, see Chapter XXIX; crea- 
tive aspect of, 375-6; God spake, know- 
ing result, 326; how to pronounce, 
376; made flesh, 146, 372-3; the lost, 
374-5; voice of Higher Self, 371. 



Words, boastful, 176; more than, re- 
quired, 384; power of, 175; respon- 
sible for idle, 176. 

Work, Great, of the Alchemists, 387; 
not required if, 279; when given a 
special, 278. 

Workman, the Master, 72. 

Works, of our Father, 380. 

World, astral, horrors, of, 100; -Chains, 
204; create your Divine, 79; created 
by, 179; mental, is dual, 209; not 
redeemed by preaching, 96; of desire, 
208; of thoughtless action, 212; the 
Queen of this, 260; the Soul and 
Spiritual, 209, 213. 

World-Chains, see Chapter XV; defi- 
nition of, 206. 

Worry, cease to, 95. 

Worship, definition of, 36; never the 
Masters, 374; of serpent, 249; only 
thing worthy of, 37; thoughts of 
phallic, 257. 

Worshiping, what your heart is, 33-7. 



Yellow, effect of flowers and foods, 
362; is Soul-color; used on altars, 
361; planet and metal, mercury, 362. 

Yogis, practices of the, 105, 394. 

Yuga, the Kali, 152. 



Zanoni, quoted 100. 
Zero, meaning of the figure, 365. 
Zoahr, quoted, 256. 

Zodiac, houses of the, 414; signs of 
the 54. 



Letters from the Teacher 

nf 3ttp ©rbrr of tift 15 

Transcribed by 
HARRIETTE AUGUSTA CURTISS. F. O. 15 

and 

F. HOMER CURTISS. B. S.. M. D., F. O. 18 

Secretary of the Order. 



SECOND EDITION 



Table of Contents 

Part I The Masters of Wisdom and Their Work. 

Part II Concerning The Order of the 15. 

Part III Prayer. 

Part IV The Astral Plane. 

Part V Phenomena. 

Part VI Dreams and Visions. 

Part VII Health and Disease. 

Part VIII The Sex Problem. 

Part IX Spiritual Growth and Development. 

Part X Miscellaneous. 

New edition uniform with (Hhe THaite of Jai*. Price $1.00 postpaid. 

The Curtiss Book Co. 

Los Angeles, Cal. 



Letters from the Teacher 

A new edition of this helpful and practical volume is now in press and will 
be ready for sale on or before January first, 1913. The first edition was sold out 
in less than a year without a line of advertisement. Readers merely recommended 
it to their friends. 

The bookmaking of the New Edition will be far superior to the first edition 
and will form a companion volume to The Voice of Isis. 

EXTRACT FROM THE PREFACE. 
"The Letters from the Teacher of The Order of the 15, in answer to questions 
from pupils, are of such universal interest to seekers after Wisdom that we con- 
sider them far too valuable to be confined merely to the ones to whom they were 
addressed. Therefore we make available extracts from the more important ones." 

These letters coming from earnest and intelligent students are just the practical 
questions that arise in the daily lives of those who are striving to live The 
Christ-life, hence, are helping to all advancing Souls who seek to understand the 
practical application of the philosophy of the Wisdom Religion, to the problems 
of the daily life. 

Read what that well-known Author and Lecturer, Mr. W. J. Colville, Mas to 
say of this volume. 

"Among the many occult volumes before the public aiming to assist students 
who desire earnestly to master lower appetites and devote themselves seriously 
and successfully to the culture of true spirituality, I know of none more useful 
and admirable than the work now before me. 

"These Letters are lessons of very high value, couched in beautiful but 
simple language and so compiled as to forcibly appeal to the many who are sincerely 
and studiously seeking to bravely tread the Path to Higher Attainment, but who 
need a faithful guide to help them on the road, both by shedding definite light 
over the pathway and by pointing out the dangers to be avoided. 

"The attitude maintained throughout all the essays is that of a convinced 
and confident Teacher, but the tone is never dogmatic or aggressive. Many 
biblical and other problems are handled clearly and convincingly in a manner that 
shows the instructor to be one sure of the position taken, desirous of imparting 
helpful knowledge to all earnest inquirers, at the same time leaving all students 
in full mental liberty. 

"That this excellent book may achieve worldwide fame and do good to multi- 
tudes is the expectation as well as the hope of the present reviewer, who knows 
much of the help already furnished to many inquirers for further and clearer 
views and applications of truth through the beneficent agency of the noble Order 
of the 15." 

W. J. COLVILLE, 
Editor, Mystic Light Library Bulletin. 

"Another interesting contribution to the department of occult science." 

Oregonian, Portland, Ore. 

"The letters of advice, of which this book is nearly full, bear every mark of 
culture, of sincerity, and of a lofty thought." 

Argonaut, San Francisco, Cal. 

"There is no subject in the book that is not treated in a manner so interesting 
that it is hard to lay it down, but when the chapter on The Sex Problem is 
reached there is found some strong food for a strong man with a strong mind. 
The tone of the whole subject is Purity. 

"The reader cannot say it has been merely pleasant reading of what he has 
known before. It is the sort of a book the student wants for reference, and like 
most of such books, repeated reading shows some new idea. It carries its own 
strength and its own Truth on every page." 

MR. EDWARDS PAUL JONES, F. O. IS. 



The Soundless Sound 

BY 

The Teacher of Qtfj* (§thtv of % 15 

A dainty book of devotion and meditation 

EXTRACT FROM THE FOREWORD 

This little book comes to you, dear reader, as a messenger winged with the 
love of the Master, Who would gather His children from the four winds. 

"To all who are yearning for love and understanding, who are weary of 
waiting for the eventide when the Master shall walk in His garden in the cool 
of the day to meet His disciples, this little booklet is sent." 

APPRECIATIONS 

"This_ is one of those truly delightful works which appeal forcibly to all who 
are seeking to penetrate below the surface of existence and discover something 
of the _ deep life which throbs and pulsates through the unseen universe. The 
transcribers. Dr. F. Homer and Harriette Augusta Curtiss, are clearly in touch 
with some fertile source of spiritual enlightenment whence they derive such instruc- 
tion as enables them to be largely helpful to seekers along the road to spiritual 
realization. As a dainty gift book, it is a gem, beautifully bound in green silk 
cloth, stamped in gold." — W. J. Colville, Editor Mystic Light Library Bulletin, 
June, 1912. 

"Its message is of the Inner Voice that all must hear, and its words are full 
of Spirit and Life, bearing all the marks of inspired utterance. It is a book to 
take with you into the silences of Nature, these fair days, to ponder until an 
answering thrill tells you its work is done, for the same Voice that voiced those 
words, now speaks in your own heart." — Annie Rix Militz, Editor Master Mind 
Magazine, August, 1912. 



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New Book Announcement 

Dr. and Mrs. Curtiss are now at work on their new volume, ii 
The Kay to the Universe, or A Spiritual Interpretation of ' 
Numbers. This will not be dry, mathematical treatise, nor a ; ; 
mere compilation and rehash of what others have said on this ;j 
fascinating subject, but will be a spiritual interpretation of the ! 
symbology of numbers applied to the various stages of the I 
spiritual unfoldment of the Soul. An eminently practical book j 
written in the clear and comprehensive style for which these \ 
authors are noted. 

Send us your name and we will send you descriptive litera- I 
ture as soon as issued. 

THE CURTISS BOOK CO. 



The Curtiss Book Company is the book and publishing j 
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The Curtiss Book Company will have any occult, mystical , 
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